


Shirayuri Potter

by gurlygenes



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Saiunkoku Monogatari
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Divergence from Canon, F/M, May add/change tags later on, Mentions of past child abuse, Mistress of Death Shirayuri, NO Immortal or Goddess-Like Shirayuri, Semi-Oblivious Seiran and Shirayuri, occasional cursing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-08
Updated: 2016-03-29
Packaged: 2018-03-29 13:53:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 71,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3898768
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gurlygenes/pseuds/gurlygenes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shirayuri Potter, known by her friends as Yuri, was tired. She was tired of the Wizarding World and the manipulative people that ran it. So she decides to leave... with a little help from some outside sources, that is.</p>
<p>This is a FEMALE HARRY! Initially All HP-VERSE, then completely SM-VERSE. Rated Mature due to mentions of past child abuse!</p>
<p>Cross-posted from FF.net (Under same username)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> **This is being cross-posted from my account on FF.net**
> 
> This plot bunny (and I thinks its such an adorable thing!!) won’t leave me alone. I have yet to see a crossover between these two worlds so who knows if it will succeed? I haven’t quite figured out how I am going to mesh them yet so it is a trial for sure!! I will say that I am screwing with Timelines for HP and there will be a bit of AU going on! If you know the HP timeline you’ll see what I mean so I will not be explaining what I mean by that! (Unless asked directly in a review)
> 
> Any suggestions would be very welcome, and if I use an idea of yours I will be sure to give a shout-out! Without further ado: “SHIRAYURI POTTER” will begin!
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Sauinkoku Monogatari or Harry Potter, I just like messing with their lives, genders, and names! :D

Shirayuri Potter, known by her friends as Yuri, was tired. She was tired of the Wizarding World and the manipulative bastards that ran it.

See, Yuri had just defeated the most recent Dark Wizard at the age of 19, after 5 drawn out years of war. Well technically it started before she was even born, then there was a hiatus, and then the war started again in earnest when she was 14. But regardless, she was the figurehead and the main target in the second part of the war, and she figured that when it was over, if she was still alive, she would be allowed to live the rest of her life, as she wanted. Which would have been in peace. But thanks to the aforementioned ministry bastards this was not to be.

“Can you believe the gall of those bloody assholes? To think that they would want me to marry THAT GIT they must be barmy! GAH!” Yuri exploded to her two best friends since they were all 11; Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. The three of them were currently in Yuri’s bedroom at her house that was given to her by her deceased godfather.

“What are they trying to do now Yuri? Did you say something about marrying someone?” Hermione questioned from beside her fiance of 2 years.

Ron whispered into Hermione’s ear, “5 galleons says they are trying to marry her to some pureblooded family. 3 guesses who and 2 of them don’t count.”

Understanding lit Hermione’s now widened eyes. She glances at Ron and murmurs one word. “Malfoy.”

He nods as they continue to let the Girl Who Lived rant and rave, preparing to stop her if she started blowing things up with her magic. Thankfully it did not quite go that far, as after a few minutes she began to visibly calm down, although the twitch in her jaw belied the new found calmness. After a moment of absolute silence, she vehemently stated, “They want me to marry Draco Malfoy. So I saved the git from certain death and we are somewhat friendly; that does not mean that I want to spend the rest of my bleedin’ life with him! One of us would be dead before the wedding was even over! And it would most likely be him!”

Her two friends wince in sympathy for her. Ron braved a response, “That’s rough mate… Is there any way out of it?”

Emerald eyes flashed with barely contained anger and contempt. “No, those thrice damned idiots managed to finally corner the both of us when we both refused, unsurprisingly. They gave us an ultimatum, either we get married or they would take our titles, money, and whatever else they could think of from us. When the both of us told them to take it and shove it up their arses, not that the Goblins would have stood for it anyways, they hesitated before Fudge rallied the troops and gave us another ultimatum. Either get married or we would both be arrested, me as the next Dark Lady and Draco as my right hand man. Bloody pricks.” She raised her hand in front of her face and clenched it into a fist.

Oh how she sometimes missed her wand. After killing Voldemort and fixing her wand with the Elder Wand, both wands merged into one before melding into her skin forming what was essentially a tattoo onto her right wrist. On the top of her wrist were the Japanese symbols, 死の女王 which read “Shi no Jixyoou”. Roughly translated, it meant “Mistress of Death”. The ‘tattoo’ was connected with an elaborate twisting design that went the rest of the way around her wrist. The rest of her body was littered with scars as a reminder for the war and what she went through. Thankfully though, her most prominent and hated scar, the lightning bolt on her forehead, faded away shortly after Voldemort’s death. Thinking of the battle made her think of those who were lost to her; Remus, Tonks, Dumbledore, Sirius, and many more that she couldn’t bear to think of without breaking down. Many more who were too young to have had to face such horrors; Too many to count.

“-ri.. YURI!” Yuri’s head jerked to look at Hermione. She huffed and said, “I have been trying to get your attention for a few minutes now." She sighed, "What are we going to do?”

Yuri thought for a moment before an idea came to her. She stood up quickly and looked at her longtime friends with sadness before quietly stating, “I have to leave.”

They stood up and Ron clapped her on the back, “Well where are you going to go? Not back to that zoo of a family right? Well wherever it is me an’ ‘Mione will help you pack and get there, right ‘Mione?”

Hermione was the brightest witch of their age (in more than one way) shrewdly looked at her best friend before looking at her dense fiancé. “Ron, I don’t think we can follow her this time. What are you thinking Yuri?”

“Well we have talked about the theory of different dimensions before remember?”

“Er, well, yes, but there is no solid proof.”

“Ah-ah, no solid proof that wizards have found, but what about the other inhabitants of this world?”

Ron, who thought he had finally caught up, disbelievingly stated, “The muggles found out about different dimensions?”

Yuri laughed before lightly slapping him upside the head, “Really, Ron I worry about you sometimes… well most of the time actually.” Ron pouted as the two women laughed. “Seriously though, I’m actually thinking about going to talk to the centaurs about it to see if they know anything. If they don’t I am sure the Goblins will.”  
The Golden Trio looked at each other and then Ron and Hermione fixed their gazes on Yuri. “You’re serious about this aren’t you mate?”

“Dead serious.”

Ron looked into her eyes, and seemed to come to some conclusion; “Fine but you will have to get the Weasley send-off seeing as you are an Honorary Weasley! Please, just wait until you can give everyone one last good bye, alright?”

Yuri was about to say that she couldn’t wait that long, but she knew it would be unfair of her to let them wonder what happened to her. She made her decision, “Fine. Although I hate to say it, but I’ll have to do this one on my own guys.” Immediately the other two started to protest. “No, hear me out. You two are going to get married soon and I refuse to give the Ministry ammunition against you. So from here on out I’m going to do this on my own. Go to the burrow and let everyone know that I’ll be there Saturday, that gives them 5 days to get ready. Don’t let them know that I’m leaving for good though, a‘right? I’ll tell everyone all together.”

“Alright Yuri. Just make sure you get there. How are you going to put the Ministry off till then?”

“Easy, I’ll tell them that as long as I can have the next week alone, I’ll agree to be married next Friday. Oh, that reminds me, make sure to invite Draco Saturday.”

Ron didn’t look happy, but with a nudge to the side from his fiancé, he grudgingly agreed to it.

Yuri pulled them into a hug and whispered, “You know that I love you two right? If I could I would stay with you… I am so sorry that I brought all of this into your lives.” She felt two slaps to her head.

“Shirayuri Potter if you say something that stupid again I’ll… I’ll… oh I am going to miss you so much!” Hermione began to cry into Ron’s shoulder.

Yuri had tears silently tracking down her face, “I know. Ron why don’t you take her home? I’ll see you guys Saturday.”

He nodded at her before taking her over to the fireplace, where they Floo’d back to their apartment.

Yuri wiped her face resolutely before grabbing her cloak. First stop, she thought to herself, Forbidden Forest.

~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~

Miles away in a forest in an unknown part of Scotland, a young woman with raven hair that fell to the middle of her back while pulled up into a ponytail, appeared out of nowhere with only a small popping sound. Her brilliant emerald eyes looked around her as if waiting for something. The forest was quiet, as though everything in it was dead, but the woman made no motion to move.

Minutes later, a rustling sound was heard before a creature that many only dream of stepped out into the clearing where the woman was.

A deep voice sounded across the distance, “Greetings, Shirayuri Potter. Why have you come here?”

Yuri bowed lowly before rising back to her full height, and with a voice full of respect, “Greetings, Bane. I wish to speak to someone in your herd who might know anything about different dimensions, is there one who has seen such in the stars?”

Bane looked at said stars for a moment before looking back at Yuri, “There is one willing to speak to you. Follow me.”

Yuri bowed once more, and then she straightened as the centaur turned around, jogging to catch up to him. They traveled in companionable silence for several minutes before Bane, followed by Yuri, came to a stop in a clearing similar to where they just came from. Yuri knew better than to say anything as Bane glanced at her before walking back the way they came, understanding the silent order, Stay Here. She sat down by a tree and leaned against it to await her next visitor.

About a half an hour later another Centaur walked up, this one female, that had light grey hair, and yet still looked young, even for a centaur. She walked towards Yuri, who by this point had already stood up to bow.

“Stand, Shirayuri Potter. I have seen in the stars that you would come to me with questions. While I cannot help you, I can tell you that the Goblins will. I came here to inform you that you will need weapons where you are going, more specifically, blades, since I know that is your main choice. Also, if you do not know it already, learn a translation spell to help you where you are going. The dimension you will end up in is very similar to our own, yet you will end up in a different kind of era, where nobility still rules. Learn as much about etiquette as you can, that should aid you in your travels. That is all I can assist you with. Good luck Shirayuri Potter.”

Yuri stood there as the centaur turned around and left. Once she got over her shock that her plan would work, she apparated back to Grimmauld Place to look in the black library for any information she could find, and then decided to go to some bookstores to do her research. She sighed as she realized she was in for a long night, and resigned herself to visit Gringotts the next day.

~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~

The next morning, as Yuri was preparing to go to Gringotts, she heard a tap tap tap on her window. When she looked over, she saw that it was a standard owl that the Ministry uses to send out its letters. She took the letter and the owl immediately took off, not needing a reply. She looked at the letter with hate before opening it;

'Shirayuri Potter; Lady of Houses Potter and Black:

I agree to allow this time expansion until your upcoming nuptials. We at the Ministry are glad to hear that you agree with our idea, and have decided on the best route for all of the Wizarding World. I will allow you the honor of telling your decision to your future husband, and offer my best wishes for a happy marriage.

Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic'

Yuri looked at the letter before throwing it to the floor and snapping her fingers. The letter lit on fire and she waited until all that was left were ashes before putting it out by snapping her fingers again. She grinned at the charred mess before continuing to get ready, she had an escape to plan after all.

~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~~~~~*^*~

A few hours later found Shirayuri standing outside of the Goblin-run bank. She went in and walked to the first available teller. When he looked up she smiled.

“Hello! Could I talk to whoever is in charge of the Potter and Black accounts please?”

The goblin looked shocked at her politeness for a split second and then his face cleared and he nodded at her. “That would be Snarl-Mouth, follow me.”

He took her to a back room and opened the door, and Yuri saw the oldest looking goblin she had ever seen. She thanked the teller that led her here and sat down the Snarl-Mouth motioned for her to.

“Well Lady Potter, I must say that I was expecting you sometime soon, seeing as how the ministry has been trying to get into your vaults…”

Yuri said a few choice words about what she thought of the ministry before she apologized for interrupting him.

“Yes, well I can understand why you would think that,” The goblin would never admit that he was inwardly laughing at the reaction of the young woman. “Now, what is it that I can help you with?”

“Well a few things, honestly. First being a will.” Snarl-mouth held up his hand and scrounged up a self-dictating quill above a piece of parchment before waving her on.

“I Shirayuri Rose Potter, do hereby leave 40 percent of my monetary wealth to Theodore Lupin, my godson, to be handled by his guardian, Andromeda Tonks, until she deems him fit to handle them himself. 10 percent of my wealth will go into the funds for Hogwarts to assist in whatever way possible. 5 percent of the remaining monetary wealth will be distributed evenly to a previously written list of orphanages contained in my will. The rest of my monetary wealth will be distributed evenly between each member of the Weasley Family, Hermione Granger, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, and Draco Malfoy. Any books I have in my name are to be set into a different vault with any of the aforementioned people being the only ones allowed to enter. Properties can be chosen from by the aforementioned people, and any that are not taken are to be sold and the money goes to the list in my will with 15 percent going to the goblins of Gringotts. I ask that Kreacher be allowed to stay at 12 Grimmauld Place until he passes on before anything is done with the house. I have taken the liberty of completely removing the wall with Mrs. Black’s portrait and disposing of it. Anything that is goblin made in my possession is to be returned to the goblins to do with as they please, any other material possessions can be distributed amongst you.

"To my friends, my family; do not be sad that I am no longer with you; be glad that I live my life as I please, not to be dictated by those who abuse their authority. I love and will miss you all. The Weasley Family was my family when my own did not care. You taught me self-worth and for that I will be eternally grateful. Gred and Forge, keep the shop going no matter what! Everyone deserves to be able to laugh. Draco, we started off as enemies and transformed into somewhat friends. Do not let the shadows of your ancestors taint what you can become. Bring honor back to the Malfoy name with your actions, you have been given a clean slate to write upon. Teddy, my Teddy-bear, I am sorry to leave you but know that I am always with you in mind and heart. I wish I could see you grow up, but you have a large family to stand beside you, and be nice to your grandmother! I love you, just as your parents love you. Luna and Neville, you stood beside me through thick and thin, you are two of the bravest people I have ever met, and I hope that you two have a wonderful marriage and many kids! Sorry that I will not be able to attend the wedding!

"To the other two-thirds of the Golden Trio, my best friends from 1st year, and my personal life savers; Hermione and Ronald: if it were not for the two of you I would never have survived to see my 12th birthday! You were by my side for every death defying stunt I pulled and action I took! I will forever remember and look upon our friendship with the utmost love, and I know that the two of you will have a happy life together! Make lots of babies!

"Thus ends the will of Shirayuri Rose Potter.”

Snarl-Mouth’s jaw had dropped when she mentioned what would be given to the goblins, and was replaced with a look of utmost respect. He bowed his head and said,   
“Ms. Potter, it has been an honor to have met you, and we goblins can only hope there will be more witches and wizards like you in the future. Now what can I help you with next?”

“Well before I leave I will need to go to my vault to withdraw some money, but before that, are there any inconspicuous swords and daggers in any of my vaults that will not stand out too much in an open country?”

Snarl-Mouth thought for a moment before nodding his head and stating, “Yes I do believe I can think of a sword and two daggers that are goblin made and can be found in the Potter Vault.”

“Oh that is wonderful! Since they would be going to Gringotts according to my will, I would like you to withdraw the amount you would deem proper to purchase them to be given to the account they should go to.”

He looked at Yuri in surprise, “Even though they are technically still in your possession?”

She looked at him sheepishly, “Well they will never been seen in this world again, so I would feel wrong if I just took what I am sure are masterpieces without some sort of compensation.”

He looked at her shrewdly and nodded. Then he questioned, “Am I to assume that is what I am to help you with next? That comment about the weapons not being seen in this world again?”

“Yes, I was told by a centaur that the goblins would be able to send me to a different dimension, is this true?”

“Why yes it is, we can be ready as soon as you need us to.”

“Do I need to get any supplies for the process?”

“No we have everything we need here.”

Yuri laughed, “Do this kind of thing often, do you?” Snarl-mouth smiled mischievously and didn’t say a word. “Alright I won’t ask! Could it be ready for early Sunday morning, say at around 9?” He nodded. “Then all that is left is to go to retrieve the weapons and then I will be back here Sunday!”

Snarl-Mouth personally led her to the Potter vaults to retrieve the weapons, the sword was light and she took a couple of practice swings with it. He asked her the obvious question, “Where did you learn to use weapons?”

She smiled wistfully before softly telling him that her deceased god father taught her and when he died she signed up with a trainer to perfect her skill. “Same with daggers, I pretty much am best at Swords and daggers, but I have some experience in a wide variety of weapons.” He nodded before handing her the daggers. All three weapons were in almost mint condition, with red and gold leather wrappings around the hilt. Of course they are a Gryffindor family so Gryffindor colors. She giggled to herself. She then grabbed a few handfuls of galleons, hoping that wherever she ended up would accept gold. When they were done in the vaults, Snarl-Mouth led her back to the front of the gate and wished her well, saying that he would see her Sunday.

She headed back home to continue doing some on pureblood etiquette hoping that there would be enough similarities between here and where she ends up for her not to gravely insult someone... There wasn’t much she could do, or find out, but it at least helped pass the time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own SM or HP (though I would totally brag about it if I did) :D

Shirayuri spent the rest of her decidedly short week studying etiquette and practicing with her sword. When she was packing what to take with her, she decided that less is more, after all this new dimension probably didn't have magic like she was used to. She took a bag that she charmed with an undetectable expansion spell and put all that she was taking with her in there, along with some basic food items such as bread and water pouches; figuring that she would be fighting she packed leggings and other similar bottoms, some tunics for free movement, some moccasin type shoes for silent approaches, and some bandages and medicine. She decided against potions because once she ran out, she would have to rely on other medicines anyways. The one blatantly wizarding thing she took though was the picture book that Hagrid had given her at the end of her first year. She had added pictures to it over the years so there were some with Siri, Remus, Tonks, and a few with Teddy in it.

She made sure to stop by a weaponry shop in order to get sheathes for her sword and daggers, the sword sheath was a standard around the hip one, but she bought sheathes that she could hide under her clothes for the daggers. She would put one on her left wrist with the handle towards her palm and the other on her right ankle with the handle towards the knee.

Her last stop on Friday, the day before the party, was an eye specialist who would correct her vision so that she wouldn't need the glasses anymore; what would she do if she lost them where she was going? The procedure didn't take long so she went back to the house to double check the back she had packed before shrinking it to where she could wear it as a necklace. Having nothing left to prepare, she went to bed so that she could head straight to the Burrow when she awoke.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Yuri double checked everything was on her body and in her pouch, as she planned to spend the rest of the day and night with the Weasley’s so this would be the last time she was at number 12 Grimmauld Place. She put her hair up into a messy bun and was about to apparate out when she remembered something. “Kreacher.”

There was a loud crack. “Yes Mistress?” a small creature stood before Yuri, crippled with age and long time grief.

“I won’t be coming back, however I would like you to know that no matter who chooses to live here, they will not be allowed to kick you out. This is your home until the day you die. Consider this my last command; Listen and obey anyone who lives here unless their command is immediately detrimental to your health and happiness. Alright?”

“Yes Mistress, Kreacher thanks you for being such a kind Mistress.” He bowed before her for the last time before disappearing in another crack.

Yuri twisted on the spot and moments later was in the front yard of the Burrow. She was immediately tackled into a three way hug with two identical red-heads on either side of her. She was 99 percent sure it was Fred who spoke first.

“So little sister, we-“

“-hear that you have-“

“-An announcement to-“

“-make. Care to share-“

“-beforehand?”

Yuri hugged them back before leaning away and laughing, “No you menaces, now let me go before we get involved in an overly large group hug!” Fred and George were barely quick enough to dodge the next two red-headed blurs with a brunette close on their heels. They impacted with a little too much force and ended up on the ground in a pile.

“Hey Gin! How have you been? Ron, Hermione I just saw you a few days ago! Where’s everyone else?”

Ginny was the one to answer her, “Malfoy, Luna and Neville are talking in the garden out back, Bill and Charlie are hanging out in one of the bedrooms, Percy and Dad haven’t arrived yet and Mum-“

“Yuri, dear, how have you been?! Oh dear you still need to eat more, a stiff wind would blow you away!” Molly Weasley shoved a sweet into Yuri’s hand before telling her that Percy and Arthur weasley were due back anytime now.

“Thanks Mrs. Weasley, I haven’t had a chance to eat yet!”

Just then, the rest of the guests and family members made their way to where all of the noise was going on and they chatted happily together until Percy and Arthur got there. Yuri was in a heated debate with Draco, Ron, and Ginny about Quidditch when Luna pulled her aside with disconcertingly clear eyes.

“You know, the Quibbling Humdingers told me something interesting. They said that you would be leaving. And they told me to tell you to avoid Nargles and to take this, that you would know what to do with it when you get where you are going.” Luna handed her a square piece of soft forest green cloth.

“Luna, I always knew you were a seer! Don’t tell anyone else yet though, I want to tell everyone at once, okay?”

She gave a soft hum of acquiescence before going back and settling into Neville’s Side. Yuri jumped back into the debate with gusto.

Once Percy and Arthur arrived, the entire group sat down to eat and chat. Shirayuri knew that she would soon have to tell everyone what was going on.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

“So Yuri, dear, you said you had something that you needed to tell all of us?”

“Yes I do, Mrs. Weasley. Please, everyone should probably sit down for this. It all starts with a pompous arse of a minister trying to get me and Draco to marry. He-“

“WHAT?”

“No offense Malfoy, but that’s just wrong!”

“Oh, I agree Weasley.”

“Do you need-“

“-us to help you-“

“-utterly destroy that-“

“-idiot and his followers?”

“Er, Fred George I don’t think you should suggest that in front of Mum.”

“GUYS HOLD ON!” Everyone became quiet when Yuri yelled. “Thank you, now if I could please continue?” at everyone’s nod she told them about the conversation her and Draco had with the Minister, the conversation between Hermione, Ron, and her, and everything she had done since then.

To say they were shocked would be an understatement. Arthur spoke up first, surprisingly, “Is this the only way, Shirayuri?”

“I think so Mr. Weasley, if they have any chance of finding me they will never give up. I asked the Goblins to inform them as soon as we finish tomorrow, and to let them know that the chances of them ever finding me are impossible. Even if they were to perform the same ritual for someone willing to come after me, they would probably not end up in the same time or dimension as me.”

All of them were choking on tears, except for maybe Draco. Even he was feeling some sadness for the loss of the friendship they could have formed over the years, and yet he was ever so grateful that she was willing to do this, for he doubted he would have been able to.

“Alright, enough of this crap people, I came for a Weasley send off, and I better be getting a damn good one!” Yuri exclaimed, trying to lighten the suddenly somber mood. 

The twins perked up first soon followed by the others. They stayed up well through the night, determined to spend as much time with her as they could.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Yuri was the first one up in the morning, or so she thought. As she made her way downstairs, she heard movement in the kitchen and upon entering found Mr. and Mrs. Weasley sitting at the table. Without a word Mr. Weasley waved her over to the table while Mrs. Weasley got her something light to eat. After a few moments of silence, Yuri spoke her thoughts.

“You know, I will always love my parents, but you two are like my second parents you know? The Dursley’s never gave a damn but you did. I was some little orphan that you didn’t know at first, and yet you were some of the first to show me true kindness and welcome me into your Hearts and Home. You two will always be the parents of my heart and I will never forget you.” She stood up and gave the both of them her biggest smile and hug. Once the hug was over she grabbed her sword and daggers and as she reached the door she turned back around, “Tell everyone I said bye, yeah?” then she continued walking.

She barely heard the two whispers of “Goodbye Daughter” before she was gone with a crack.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Snarl-Mouth was already waiting for Yuri as she appeared in the middle of Gringotts. “This way Lady Potter.” She was taken into a back room that already had some other goblins waiting there. “Anything else before we get started? No? Good. Stand in the Middle of the circle please, yes right there. Now it is likely that you will pass out and wake up wherever you end up, as no other before has stayed conscious through the whole process. Now close your eyes and stand as still as possible.” When she nodded that she was ready, Snarl-mouth began to chant in what she could only assume was the goblin language and the others standing around soon joined in.

Soon, Yuri’s body began to feel weird and she became light headed. After a few minutes of this, Shirayuri faded into unconsciousness.

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Ro Ensei was just minding his own troubles as he walked towards the Capital when he noticed a person collapsed on the dried up ground. “Mah mah, the heat must have gotten to them… ah well I might as well take them with me.” He kept up his guard as he walked towards the heap, this wouldn’t be the first time an ‘innocent bystander’ attacked him, after all. The closer he got, the more cautious he became until he was close enough to tap them with his staff. When he got no response, he tapped a little harder when the figure suddenly sprang up with wide frightened eyes before taking off.

Those eyes caught Ensei’s attention immediately. They were the most startling green he had ever seen.

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Yuri woke to a sudden jab into her lower back and sprang to her feet. She would later admit to herself that she reacted rather badly by running off, but the man did look rather rough and she had still been slightly disoriented from the ritual to get here. 'Well no matter, it was probably for the best anyways.' She looked around the marketplace she found herself in once she had stopped running. The guards at the entrance to the city had tried to stop her, but a quick Confundus charm had solved that problem rather quickly. 'I need to avoid using magic like that, I will come to rely on it too heavily and I will eventually be discovered... Alright I will worry about that later. For now… translation spell...' She waved her hand over her face and suddenly she could understand the people around her. 'I think I will need to try to figure out a variation of that spell so that I can read the language as well…' Her train of thought was cut off as two children race past her. She caught part of their argument and became slightly concerned about her future.

“-sensei said that women will eventually be able to do the same stuff as men!”

“Why would they need to do that? Us men are perfectly capable of taking care of you women!”

They raced off before Shirayuri could catch any more of their conversation. 'Well bloody hell, I would land in the Male Dominant dimension wouldn’t I? Bleedin’ bollucks I best disguise myself as a man till I get a better lay of the land.' With that plan in mind she looked around to note that she was wearing clothes that were similar enough to the men’s around her that she wouldn’t have to worry about that aspect. She looked down at her chest before sighing. 'Damn I’m going to have to wrap those or they will be a dead give a way.' She also took notice that most of the men had their hair up and covered with a cloth… cloth… Luna had given her a cloth similar to those! 'Bless you Luna-girl!' She quickly ducked into a storage house and took the bandages she had brought with her out of her bag.

She used them to bind her breasts so that it gave the illusion of a solid chest. Then she took her hair down and redid it with the forest green cloth, leaving her bangs to frame her face. She looked around for her reflection and deemed herself as passable.

Leaving the building she wandered around until she heard a woman’s cheerful voice. “-don’t have to read them! Turn the sheets over and use the back to practice your writing with!”

She decided to wait outside of the building hoping that she could get the woman to help her find somewhere to stay. She sat against a wall and started to think on variations of the translation spell that she could use to be able to read.

After a while, she had a pretty good idea of what she would need to do, she just needed to find a note or two to use the spell on to test it. Yuri decided to walk around a little more before returning to talk to the woman. She made her wait to what looked like a granary before she stumbled and her vision went black.

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Shi Seiran was doing his job as a granary guard when he heard the shouts from outside talking about someone collapsing. He ran to where the voices were and discovered a group of men surrounding a body. He flipped over the body and did a quick once over to make sure there were no obvious wounds.

He turned to look at the group, “Does anyone recognize him?” they all looked at each other but none spoke up. “I am going to take him to the family I stay with and then I will be right back, can one of you cover for me until then?” One of the other guards nodded so Seiran turned back to the limp form and picked him up. He had been expecting a greater weight so he had almost over-compensated and sent them both tumbling onto the ground. 'He feels like he hasn’t had a good meal in years.' As he started walking towards the Kou Residence, he thought back on the meals he had had over the years and how even with money problems, they never went hungry.  
He shifted the boy in his arms and noticed for the first time the sword hanging at his side. It made Seiran wonder just who this boy was.

Once he arrived at his home, he went in and thankfully the master of the house was off of work that day. “Shouka-sama, this boy collapsed outside of the granary, can you take care of him until Ojou-san gets back?”

“Sure Seiran, bring him in here.” Shouka led him to one of the unused bedrooms and Seiran set him down on the bed.

“I need to head back, but send word if you need any assistance.”

“Don’t worry Seiran, head on back. I will see you later tonight.”

Seiran bowed and took one last look at the boy before returning to work.

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Kou Shouka may have appeared to many as nothing more than a doting father, but to the few that knew the truth, they knew that he used to be a vicious assassin, and still possessed many of those skills. He noticed the boy’s sword and had no doubt that there was most likely at least one hidden blade. However, he was also one who was willing to wait and allow people the chance to prove themselves before he deemed them trustworthy or dangerous. He hoped that this young boy and no reason to fall into the second category.

He was patiently waiting for the boy to wake up when he heard his daughter calling for him.

“Tou-san, there is a man collapsed outside of the gate, would you help me bring him in?”

“Hai, Shuurei. Oh and Seiran brought home another collapsed stray earlier today, but he has yet to wake up. I’ll take you to him once we get this man into a room.”

They got the brown-haired man situated and Shuurei then and there decided that he reminded her of a Bear. When her father took her to check on the boy, she could not think of words to describe his gentle beauty. His black hair was darker than a moonless night and his skin was milky white. But even when noticing the beauty, Shuurei couldn’t help but think that something was off with the boy… She decided to think on it while preparing some food for her hopefully, soon to be awake guests.

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Seiran’s decent day had decidedly taken a turn for the worst when upon his arrival home, he saw someone that didn’t belong there. After taking Ensei aside for a little ‘chat’ as he called it, they sat down at the table to finish eating. Seiran looked towards Shouka and Shuurei and asked them if the boy had woken up yet.

Shouka looked concerned for a moment before shaking his head. “No, he hasn’t stirred even a bit. He wasn’t running a fever, but he was sweating a bit.”

Shuurei put her food down; “Maybe I should go check on him?” as she started to get up Seiran stood and grabbed Ensei.

“No, ojou-san, I don’t know if he can use that sword he was carrying but I’ll not risk it. I’ll take our other ‘guest’ here with me, maybe they know each other.”

Ensei went to complain when a glare from Seiran shut him up. He settled for mumbling under his breath as he followed the other man.

As soon as they entered the room, the figure on the bed jumped and grabbed his sword before darting to a corner.

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Yuri was coming to when she heard someone, make that two someone’s, enter the room she was in. She grabbed her sword and drew it before demanding in a dry scratchy voice, “Who are you and where am I?”

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Ensei was shocked to see familiar green eyes. Seiran went to go for his sword but Ensei put a hand on his arm. He murmured quietly enough so that the boy wouldn’t hear him, “Don’t. I met him earlier outside of the city, I think this is an instinctual reaction, I don’t think he means any harm.” He then lifted his hands in order to put that boy at ease before stepping forward slowly. “I am Ensei and this is Seiran, and you are at the Kou Residence where Seiran lives with Shuurei-chan and Shouka sama. Seiran brought you here when you collapsed, and you met me outside of the city earlier today. What is your name?”

Yuri thought quickly before spitting out, “Shi” she unconsciously grabbed the wrist with the tattoo before repeating, “Kazeno Shi.” She then sheathed her sword and bowed towards them, “I apologize for my actions, I am afraid they are ingrained in me.”

Seiran looked at him curiously before waving him off, “No worries; come let’s get you something to eat.”

Ensei then enthusiastically jumped in, “Yeah, Hime-san makes the best food.”

Seiran and him began to bicker and Yuri just quietly observed, trying to see if there was any sense of falseness about the two. There was a hidden tension between them, but she was sure it had nothing to do with her. Any remaining worries were dispelled as soon as she met Shuurei and Shouka, though she was sure there was more to Shouka than meets the eye. As Shuurei began talking to Ensei, Yuri came to a realization. “The temple.” Although she said it quietly, the rest of the room went silent almost immediately. “Oh sorry, I just realized that before I passed out I had been outside of a temple where I heard you teaching Shuurei-chan. You sounded like a wonderful teacher.”

Shuurei blushed at the compliment before conversation resumed at the table. Yuri ate peacefully before excusing herself and going outside to practice with her sword before sleeping.

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Yuri didn’t realize how late it had gotten until she noticed Ensei run past her and jumping over the wall surrounding the Residence. She quickly makes to follow him. 'The Gryffindor brashness strikes again!' She inwardly laughs at her little joke. When she arrives to where he is Yuri notices that he is vastly outnumbered but what she assumed were bandits, and yet he didn’t seem ot be having any trouble at all. She planned to just sit back and watch, until one began to sneak up behind Ensei. Yuri quickly grabbed the knife out of her ankle sheath and threw it with devastating accuracy, nailing the coward in the hand. 'Guess he won’t be using a sword for a while.'

Ensei was shocked to hear a pained cry behind him, and swung around until he spotted a familiar figure darting into the fight. 'No boy should be able to fight that well. Me and Seiran included.' His distraction nearly cost him so he decided to focus on the battle and ask questions later.

After several minutes he and Shi tied up the bandits to be found by guards later on.

They began to walk towards the residence before Ensei asked a question, “Ne, Shi… where did you learn to fight like that?”

Yuri looked at him with amusement in her eyes. 'Oh this will be fun.' “I could ask the same of you… but somehow I think we both know that any answer we give would not be the truth at this point in time.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Simple. There is not one person in this world that I trust with my life at the moment. Gain that trust, gain the story.”

“How do you want me to prove that you can trust me?”

“Just act normally and I’ll decide from there. Anyways, I assume that this is a nightly habit for you? If so I will join you again tomorrow. Good night, Ensei.”

Ensei could only look at the receding back in a mix of frustration and humor. And then he thought on what was said. 'So there is no one he trusts…? What has happened to that one?'

He decided to bring it up to Seiran tomorrow and see what he thought. 'Well this should be an interesting journey.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I feel like I rushed Yuri out of HP verse, but I was just stoked to have her in the SM world! I hope it didn't turn out too badly though! Each chapter is going to be around the equivalent of one episode each (in theory). There wont be as many POV's since this is a Shirayuri-centric so all of the POV's will have something to do with her! As we move on in the Anime, there will be more and more differences, as Yuri has to fit in somewhere right? Heh. Well till next chapter!
> 
> ~GG


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Liluka (FF.net) gave me some pretty good insight that I am afraid I was going to overlook. Such as maybe Yuri’s reactions to how things work in Saiunkoku? I made it obvious that she realizes it is a male dominated culture, but I still left it kind of vague so now I can play it off as she didn’t realize how bad it was. I think her mind set right now is that women have just started playing larger parts a few years ago so people are still getting used to the idea, not that it hasn’t happened yet! I had her decide to dress as a man until she knew for sure how a woman would be viewed in the culture… so who will be the first to discover that ‘he’ is a SHE?!?! Read on to find out!
> 
> Oh and as a side note, I am starting this chapter around half way through episode 8 of the anime, I skipped the first 7 episodes because of 2 reasons: 1) I wanted to leave the part where shuurei is a consort alone (plus I couldn’t think of a good way to introduce Yuri during that time); and 2) cause I love Ensei too much to leave him out of it!
> 
> I would like to take this time to explain why I chose the name "Sirayuri" for anyone who doesn't know what it means; It means "White Lily" (like the flower) so I chose as a sorta "in honor of" to Lily Potter. I agree with you [outra (FF.net) ] that "Potteru" is awkward so I am going to go back and change it to "Kazeno" which means 'of the wind'; it will sort of represent both the agility she moves with and the fact that as far as anyone knows right now, she came from nowhere.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing recognizable. At all… not even a little bit… anyways ENJOY!

Yuri woke early the next morning and decided to walk around the grounds to get used to them. She was walking towards the kitchen when she heard someone moving about. Deciding to get to know her house-mates better she went to see who it was. When she walked into the kitchen she found Shouka making some tea.

Without glancing up, he asked “Would you like to join me for some tea?”

“I suppose I would. Thank you.” They both took a seat at the table and Shouka placed a cup before her. She picked it up and waited for him to take a sip before taking a sip herself. When the tea first hit her tongue she froze. 'Hmmm… not the tea I am used to, but not bad either… reminds me a bit of straight black coffee actually.' They sat in silence for a few moments before Yuri spoke up.

“So what did you used to do?”

Shouka sat his cup down before curiously questioning, “What do you mean?”

“Well, the fact that you knew someone was behind you when I walked in is a hint that you used to be someone used to being aware of their surroundings. I didn’t make a sound and yet you knew I was there. How?”

“I could ask the same of you, how is it that someone your age moves that quietly and knows their way around not only a sword but daggers as well? You are what, 15 or 16 years old? Even if you were a part of a high ranking house, and were taught swordplay, you only gain the wariness you carry and the obvious knowledge you have after experience.”

'I know that I am small for my age thanks to the Dursley’s but seriously 15 or 16?' Ignoring the age comment she thoughtfully hummed before revealing a very small part of her life. “Well, having someone set on killing you since the age of 1 will do that to you.” Yuri watched intently for Shouka’s facial expression to that revelation. A brief expression of shock and concern crossed his face before it was carefully pleasant once again.

“Why would someone want to kill you? Are they still after you?” Yuri decided to ignore the first question and answer the second.

“No, I killed him several months ago, so you don’t have to worry about him coming anywhere near your family. Thank you for the tea Shouka-sama, but I believe I will take my leave.” She gave a short bow before going to continue her exploration.

She ran into Shuurei who was on her way out. “Where are you going Shuurei-chan?”

“Oh! Shi-kun you scared me! I am on my way to the temple to teach the kids today… would you like to join us?” Yuri considered for a moment before deciding to tag along. 

'Maybe I can get a hold of something to use the translation spell on.'

#########################################################################

Shouka was still sitting in that same position when Ensei and Seiran found him a short while later. Seiran saw the concern on his face.

“Shouka-sama, has something happened?”

Shouka looked at them and waved towards the other two chairs, waiting for them to sit down before saying anything. “Has Shuurei left yet?”

Ensei and Seiran looked at each other before Ensei answered. “Yeah, I saw Hime-san and Shi leave a little bit ago.”

Shouka nodded before looking at them. “That boy has had a hard life. He didn’t say much, but he did tell me that he had someone who had been after him since he was a year old.”

Seiran had a sinking feeling in his stomach. “After him for what reason?”

Shouka just sighed, “To kill him.”

The three men just silently looked at each other all thinking the same thing; why?

##########################################################################

Shuurei and Yuri walked in companionable silence to the same temple that Yuri had stumbled upon the day before. As they got closer, they could hear the children that were waiting for their sensei to arrive. Yuri decided that this was a good opportunity to learn as much about this new place as possible decided to sit in a random chair at the back of the room. As Shuurei was having them write practice sentences on the paper, Yuri took the chance to use the translation spell that would help her learn the written language. The odd symbols, to her, became something that she could read. She heaved a sigh of relief that it had worked. 'Now I won’t have to go about learning it by hand!'

Yuri started to doze off when Shuurei began to teach about the History and Government of the country. She started to make not of some of the things that Shuurei was teaching and had to wonder why she wasn’t a part of the government. 'She makes a lot of good points and obviously knows what she is talking about, so why is she a teacher?' Yuri made it a point to ask her as they headed back towards the Kou Estate.

“Ne, Shuurei… Why do you teach them?”

Shuurei looked confused, “What do you mean?”

“I mean, why are you a teacher when you obviously belong in the government?”

Shuurei looked at her with something akin to hurt. “That is not funny Shi-kun! You know why I cannot be in the Government!”

Not it was Yuri’s turn to be confused. “What? I don’t know what you are talking about… why can’t you be a part of the government?”

Shuurei looked at her companion in astonishment. 'Maybe… he really doesn’t know?' “Women cannot work in the government, it’s not allowed. Women cannot even be in the palace without being a part of the harem or in extrememly special circumstances.”

Yuri was shocked. It quickly became anger, “Well that is just idiotic! Why can’t they see that women are just as capable as men, and that some are even more so! Why my best friend was the smartest out of everyone I knew, ministry officials included!”

Shuurei noted the word ‘ministry’ and had to ask, “Shi-kun… where are you from? And what is a ‘ministry’?”

Yuri’s face went blank as she answered, “I came from far away… and ‘ministry’ is just a word that we used for the government.” Before Shuurei could respond or ask more questions Yuri spoke again. “Shuurei, could you teach me? About the government and economy I mean?”

Being successfully distracted, Shuurei thought before she answered, “Well how much do you know, and what do you want to learn?”

“I know essentially nothing and would like for you to teach me everything that you know.”

“Well I have a friend, Kouyuu-dono who is teaching me, so how about you sit in on our lessons, and I teach you when I can?”

“Thank you Shuurei-chan, I would love that.” The rest of their walk back was spent talking about nonsensical things, Shuurei’s questions being diverted for the moment.

########################################################################

As Yuri went outside to practice, Shuurei approached her father and Ensei, who were talking in the kitchen. She sat down with them and waited until they were done talking before bringing up their guest. “Tou-sama, Ensei, there is something odd about Shi-kun.”

Needless to say, the two men were shocked that Shuurei would notice something like that. Shouka was the first to speak, “What do you mean Shuurei?”

She looked around uncertainly for a moment before recounting their conversation. Ensei looked thoughtful, “I wonder where exactly ‘far away’ is… I wonder how it is that he is so ignorant of how the country works… he had to have been taught by someone, I would think the same that taught him how to use a sword.”

Shouka just ‘hmmmm’ed before saying, “I wonder… maybe his teacher didn’t know anything either? What I am more curious about are his parents.”  
All three of them jumped when a voice spoke from the doorway, “My parents died when I was 15 months old.” Yuri came and sat down with them. She looked directly at Shouka, “Why do you care?”

Shuurei’s eyes teared up as she heard that he was orphaned at such a young age. Before Shouka could answer the question directed at him, She interrupted, “Who took care of you? Did you go to relatives?”

Yuri didn’t realize it, but with those questions, years’ worth of pain showed in her eyes, “Who took care of me? No one. But yes I did go live with my 'relatives'.” The last worth was said with such pain and fury that the other three were taken aback. Shuurei was about to comment on that when Shouka shook his head at her, silently telling her that she shouldn’t ask about it. Yuri looked back at Shouka, “Anything else you would like to know?”

“Were your parents killed by the same person who was trying to kill you?” Shuurei gasped at that.

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“They died protecting me.”

“No, I meant why was he trying to kill you?”

“Ah… well I believe that would be a story for another time. Next?”

“Why did you come to the capital? And I noticed when Seiran brought you here that you didn’t have anything on you except for your weapons, how did you get in?”

“I didn’t plan to come here; this is just where I ended up in my travels. As for how I got in, I… ah… well I had gotten stopped by the guards, but I didn’t know what they were talking about when they asked if I had a pass so I kind of snuck past them.”

Shouka stared at him as Ensei asked the obvious, “How do you not know what a pass is? How have you gotten anywhere so far?”

Yuri started feeling cornered, “I just didn’t okay? I have never needed one before.” They looked at her doubtfully. She suddenly said, “I need new clothes. Can someone show where I can buy some?” They once again looked at her doubtfully, “What?”

“Well how are you going to buy them?” Shouka asked.

Yuri looked relieved and then anxious, “They will accept gold right?”

The shocked silence was not helping Yuri’s nerves. Then Shuurei spoke up, “You have gold?”

“Er, yes?” Yuri pulled out some of her galleons and placed it on the table.

Shouka and Ensei curiously picked one up and studied them before Shouka asked, “What are these markings?”

Yuri hesitantly answered, “They are symbols from where I am from. But it is real gold so they can be used right?” They just looked at her like she was crazy for even asking.

##########################################################################

Seiran had spent the entire day while he was working thinking about their mysterious guest. Wondering why he was here, where he was from, why he had to know how to use a sword, and why he was alone. His suspicion was ingrained in him much like the boy said his wariness was.

He was still thinking about it as he walked into the kitchen where he came upon the sight of his Ojou-san, Shouka-sama, Ensei, and the boy, Shi, staring at each other in silence. “What’s going on?”

“Se-seiran, he has GOLD!!!” Shuurei looked like she would be bouncing around in excitement if she hadn’t been so shocked.

Seiran’s suspicion was raised even higher, for he knew that the boy had had nothing but his weapons when Seiran had carried him here. “Where did you get gold?”

Shi looked at him, “I brought it with me from my home.”

Shuurei was essentially vibrating in her seat, “Look at it Seiran, have you ever seen markings like these before?”

Seiran grabbed a coin and examined it before exclaiming, with some shock, “No, I have never seen anything like them before… where did you say you were from Shi?”

He noticed the boy looked away as he answered, “I didn’t.”

More silence ensued before Ensei broke it. “Well since we know you have money, Seiran and I can show you where to get clothes while Hime-san cooks supper alright?”

Yuri looked at the two men uncertainly before she nodded her consent.

“Alright, come on Seiran, let’s go!”

###########################################################################

Yuri had just finished buying clothes and the three of them were heading back when the two men in front of her simultaneously turned around and looked at her. “What now?”

Ensei just stared at her while Seiran spoke up. “I just want to make it clear that if you do anything to hurt Ojou-san or Shouka-sama, I will kill you.”

Yuri sighed in relief, “Oh is that what the glare was for? Do not worry, I am not one to hurt any innocent, and I only ever harm those who attack me first. So unless you are convinced that Shuurei-chan is just going to up and attack me there is nothing to worry about.” 'As for Shouka, as long as I didn’t use magic, he could probably do more damage to me than I to him.'

Seiran looked into her eyes as if trying to read her mind before suddenly relaxing as he nodded. “Alright, I will take you at your word.”

Ensei took this opportunity, “Do you trust us enough to tell us the truth now?”

Yuri stiffened, “What do you mean? I have told you the truth so far.”

“Hmm, maybe. But it definitely wasn’t the whole truth.”

“And are you going to tell me your life story? No, I didn’t think so.” She sighed before continuing. “Look, for me to tell you my story, the whole story, I need to trust you with my life. Do I trust you right now? Yes. With my life, not yet. I don’t think that the four of you would do anything to purposely betray my trust, but my story is very confusing not to mention long and unbelievable if I hadn’t lived through it myself. Will you wait a little while longer before asking me again please?”

They looked at her considering the pros and cons before agreeing.

“Thank you.”

########################################################################

The next few days were much the same, Yuri would go with Shuurei to the temple, they would come back and Shuurei would teach her how to cook some of the things they ate for dinner, She would sometimes Spar with Ensei and Seiran when he got back, she would drink tea with Shouka later at night, help Ensei with the bandits that he snuck out for, and then go to sleep.

Two weeks after she had arrived brought some more interesting people into her life.

Shuurei walked in the door with two people following her. “Ah Shi-kun, there you are!” She pointed to the taller of the two, who had dark hair. “This is General Ran Shuuei-sama, and this” she points to the shorter man with almost seafoam colored hair, “is Ri Kouyuu-sama. Kouyuu-sama, Ran-shogun, this is Kazeno Shi. He has been staying with us for a couple of weeks now.”

Kouyuu just looked at him and nodded, but Shuuei took a closer look. 'Hmm… now this is interesting.' He grinned and nodded at the young ‘man’.

Yuri made to follow Yuri and Kouyuu when a hand on her arm stopped her. “Shi-kun, could I talk to you a minute?”

The look in his eyes disconcerted her. They were full of amusement and knowledge. She hesitantly nodded and followed the man outside. He looked around to make sure there were no eavesdroppers before saying anything.

“So… I am extremely curious as to why a woman would be dressed like a man. Do you even know how to use that sword hanging on you hip?”

Yuri froze. 'Shit. Shit shit damn. You have got to be kidding me.' She leaned against the nearest wall and looked at him with carefully blank eyes. “How did you know?”

The man in front of her gave a wolfish grin, “Let’s just say that I have enough intimate experience with women that even with your efforts I could tell. There is just something about you that screams ‘I am a woman’. Now what about being able to use that sword?”

Yuri did not answer with words. Instead she quickly drew said sword and darted towards him planning to put the blade to his neck. He surprised her by moving to the side at the last minute and swiping his leg out trying to trip her. She noticed and jumped above it right before they made contact. When she landed she swung around bringing her sword up to block the dagger he had pulled from inside of his clothing. “So you can use it. Wonderful!” He put the dagger away and smiled at her.

She followed suit and sheathed her sword. He stood there just looking at her for a moment before asking her once again why she was dressed as a man. “Why should I tell you?” she asked with a curious tilt to her head.

“Hmm. Well to be honest I am merely trying to satisfy my curiosity.”

“If I don’t tell you are you going to tell everyone about my gender?”

He considered her for a moment and then grinned once again. “No. I want to see how this will play out and who will be the next to discover the truth. Does no one know yet?”

“If they do, no one has mentioned it.”

“The chances of that being the case are slim, so I think it is safe to say no. Oh good, that makes this even more entertaining! Should we head back inside now?”

Yuri nodded her head and began walking before Shuuei’s voice made her stop. “Wait, just one more question.” She stiffened up slightly.

“What?”

“What is your real name? Somehow ‘Death’ doesn’t suit you.”

“It suits me more than you would think, but to answer your question it is Kazeno Shirayuri.”

“’White Lily’… that suits you much better, although eventually you will have to give me the story on why you think ‘Shi’ suits you. Well Shirayuri, let us go back inside.”

“Yuri.”

“What?”

“If we are alone and you feel it necessary to not use ‘Shi’, call me Yuri.” He smiled at her and nodded before he began walking. Yuri followed him, all the while thinking that that could have gone so much worse.

'Thank you, Shuuei.'

############################################################################

Surprisingly, no one questioned them trying to find out what they talked about. Kouyuu glanced at her before turning a questioning gaze onto Shuuei. Shuuei just smiled and ignored the look the man was sending him. Kouyuu shrugged and turned back to the conversation that was being held about the Emperor, where Ensei was talking.

“It’s amazing for such a young man to ascend as His Majesty…”

Yuri was curious, “Why? How old is he?”

Kouyuu grumbled a bit, “He’s nineteen. He’s sheltered, spoiled, and a natural airhead.”

Shuurei giggled, “That’s true. He is an airhead.”

Yuri looked at her curiously as Ensei questioned, “You know the Emperor, Hime-san?”

“N-not really. Ah…haha…” Yuri snorted in her mind. 'Yeah, right, and I’m not a woman.'

Shuuei saved her from further questioning. “I think that, surprisingly he might become a great ruler… well there is hope anyways.” Then after a moment of silence, he brought up the thieves that had been coming from Sa Province.

Yuri listened with half an ear as they continued talking about it. 'Sa Province… Maybe I should make sure that Shuurei includes geography in our lessons…' Then something Shuuei said registered in her mind. “I’m sorry, say that again?”

“I said that I would like Seiran and you if you are interested, to help with the Bandit problem along with the Plume Forest Army.”

Shuurei overcame her speechlessness, “Why Seiran? He is a granary guard!”

Yuri was still in shock so she didn’t catch much of what Shuuei said in response. There was something about a ‘Grandmaster Sou’ and his commanding officers. Did a General have officers? Are they like the highest rank or something? 'One more thing to ask about.' She stayed quiet while Seiran tried to hoist Ensei off instead of him, but Shuuei insisted that his superiors wanted Seiran.

What caught her attention next was Kouyuu asking if Shuurei would work in the Imperial Council for a short while. She agreed and Ensei said he would go with her to help.  
Yuri thought for a moment before coming to a decision. “Kouyuu-san, Shuuei-san; can I turns working in the Court and helping with the bandits? Shuurei-chan has been tutoring me about the government, so some experience, no matter how menial would be appreciated, but I would also like to help with the bandit situation.”

'No need to mention I’ve been doing that with Ensei at night anyways.'

Everyone turned to look at her with surprise evident on their faces. Shuuei gave a thoughtful hum. “I don’t see a problem with it… do you Kouyuu?” Kouyuu took a moment to think about it before agreeing. Why don’t you come with Shuurei for the first day, then you can alternate however you wish.”

“Sounds good. Thank you.”

Kouyuu and Shuuei replied at the same time, “No; thank you.”

Shuurei asked, “So where will we go to help?”

Yuri could swear that both Kouyuu and Shuuei hesitated before Kouyuu answered. “Well you will be miscellaneous assistants to the Chamberlain of the Department of Treasury and Taxation.” Shuurei seemed concerned that it was a very important job but Kouyuu told her otherwise.

Yuri wasn’t quite clear on what this would entail so she voiced her concern. Shuuei was the one to put her concern to rest, “You will be doing whatever you’re told, mostly running documents from place to place.” Yuri nodded her understanding.

She was thinking about how she would split her time between the two jobs, training, studying, and the night-time escapades, only partially listening to Ensei encourage Shuurei to take the offer. Yuri was sure that she wasn’t the only one who realized that Shuurei wanted it to be permanent instead of temporary. Shuurei was happy when she decided to take the job.

Then Kouyuu popped her little happy bubble. “As you know, women are not allowed in the Caucus so you will have to go dressed as a boy.”

“Won’t someone realize I am a girl?”

Kouyuu looked and sounded entirely too smug, “With your figure, no one will realize a thing.” Yuri got up and walked around the table right by Kouyuu and before she could say anything, she saw Shuurei’s face go from angry to downtrodden.

Yuri lightly slapped him on the back of the head, “You should never insult a Lady’s figure you know.”

Kouyuu looked shocked for a split second; then the indignation came. “I was only telling the truth!”

She leveled him with a calm glare. “It is still rude and hurtful, you should apologize. All you should say in a situation like that is something like, ‘No we will make sure no one finds out.’ It’s a diplomatic yet honest answer.”

Kouyuu glared at her for several seconds before grunting out a sorry to Shuurei. Then he resumed glaring. Yuri only laughed as she pat him on the head. “So stubborn, but I have dealt with worse. Good job.” She started to leave and then remember something. “When are we going to start?”

Shuuei looked at Kouyuu, but he was glaring at the wall. “Well I believe that Kouyuu will be here the day after tomorrow to take you, so maybe you should go with Seiran the next day?”

Though he would never admit it, Kouyuu was pouting at being treated like a little boy by a boy who was younger than him!

Yuri nodded, bid everyone goodnight, and went to do some training while waiting for Ensei to head out.

##########################################################################

Shuuei and Kouyuu were leaving the Kou Residence, and as they were walking the volunteers were brought up. Shuuei spoke first. “Won’t the Chamberlain of Treasury and Taxation find out that Shuurei is a woman?” 'And maybe even Yuri for that matter?'

“Hmmm. Maybe, maybe not. We will just have to see. But I am sure she will surprise him with her attitude and hard work. Ne, what do you think of that Shi kid?”

“Well… I think that Shi is an interesting person.”

That’s right, what did you two talk about earlier?”

“Tsk-tsk, nothing important...” 'yet' “Just getting to know 'him' better.”

“Oh.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that’s the end of another chapter, and OH NO SHUUEI KNOWS!!! Lol I was considering making Kijin be the one to find out the truth, but with how much of a womanizer Shuuei is portrayed to be, I just imagined his as having a ‘woman radar’ to alert him to any nearby females!
> 
> Anyways next chapter we will see Yuri helping Shuurei and interacting with Ko Kijin AND Kou Reishin! I will have to make something up for when she is with Seiran, but I want them to spend more time together.
> 
> Until next time!
> 
> ~GG


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: GG does not own anything. Except for her car and laptop and various other possessions. But that’s it.  
> Actually she doesn't even own her own car now... she had to get a new one and so technically the bank owns it for now. 
> 
> (T-T)

The morning that Yuri, Shuurei, and Ensei were going to go help at the palace, Yuri was sitting in the kitchen with Shouka enjoying the tea that he had made. They were sitting in companionable silence when the other three showed up. Shuurei was the first to notice what Yuri was drinking. She made a noise of distress as she grabbed Yuri and hauled her out of the room, Ensei and Seiran following. Shuurei kept pulling her along until they got to a more secluded area of the residence.

“Oh no! I am sorry that you had to drink Tou-sama’s tea! Isn’t it very bitter?”

Yuri gazed at the three of them with a look of confusion, “Well, yes it’s bitter but isn’t it supposed to be?” She guessed by their horror-filled looks that the answer was ‘no’. “It really isn’t bad; we had a drink that was bitter like this where I came from…”

Seiran looked at her in disbelief, “You… you like it?”

Ensei butt in, “Seriously?”

Yuri looked at them curiously, “Yes, I do… but then again I have had some of the most foul poti-… drinks ever created, so my view on this is probably more in line with, ‘better than most things I’ve had’. Is there anything else you needed?”

They just shook their heads at her, partially in answer to the question, and partially in disbelief.

“Oh good, then I am going to go finish my tea and then we will meet at the gate? Great!”

The three of them watched Shi walk off still radiating disbelief. Shuurei spoke up, “I can’t believe it… Ryuuki is the only other person I know that honestly 'likes' Tou-sama’s tea…” She dazedly walked off to get dressed for the day.

Seiran and Ensei stood in silence for another moment before Seiran broke it. “Keep a close watch on him today when you can. I don’t think he is a threat to us but my curiosity knows no bounds when it comes to finding out about him.” Ensei nodded and the two of them walked off to finish their preparations for the day.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Several minutes later found all of them, including Shouka, at the gate. Shuurei stood in front of them, as if for an inspection, dressed as a man. Yuri just thought that she looked adorable dressed like that! Of course, anyone who had ever spent any time with Shuurei would be able to tell that it was her. 'Ah well, this should prove entertaining.' She snapped to attention as she heard the men speak.

“This looks good on you.”

“Indeed. I don’t think it’s feminine at all!”

“You make a wonderful boy.”

Yuri felt her eye twitch in exasperation. She slapped the three men on the back of their heads, “Seriously? Did you learn nothing from Kouyuu’s mistake the other night? *sigh* Try to encourage without being so insulting! Come on Shuurei, let’s leave the idiots to rot.” She grabbed Shuurei’s arm and began walking off. 'Hopefully this is the right way.'

Shuurei laughed and then spun them around, “It’s this way Shi-kun!” as they passed Shouka, Seiran, and Ensei, Shuurei called out, “We’re leaving!”

The three of them responded with, “Have a nice day!”

Shuurei and Yuri just waved as they kept walking, not noticing when Seiran elbowed Ensei in the side.

“Oi, Hime-san, Shi, hold on!” Ensei ran to catch up with them.

The three of them chatted on about nothing as they walked towards the palace. Once they got there, the three of them paused. Yuri noticed Shuurei take a deep breath. 'Stupid government, who are they to say women can’t do the job as well as a man!' She broke out of her thoughts when she realized the other two were waiting for her.

They met up with Kouyuu who started leading them towards the Department of Treasury and Taxation. Shuurei and Kouyuu were talking about the Chamberlain while Ensei and Yuri were looking around them in wonder. That wonder soon turned to confusion, for they had been walking for a very long time. 'I swear we have passed that tree 3 times at least.'

Ensei was still looking around in confusion as he stated, “Eh, so there are interesting people even in the government. Anyways, Vice-Chamberlain Ri… Are we lost? We have been walking for close to 2 hours now.”

Yuri slapped her hand over her mouth to muffle her laughter. 'S-so blunt!' Ensei looked at her with amusement shining in his eyes. Yuri coughed to get her laughter under control, and would have succeeded had Kouyuu not shouted something about someone moving the Department around on him.

“Ahahahaha!!! You have got to be kidding me! Someone moved the department! Pfft… oh my god my stomach hurts. Ensei, help me up.” Ensei reached a hand down to help Shi from the ground where she had fallen. He grabbed her hand and noticed something. 'His hands… they are small even for a boy his age. Could it be…?' “Ensei…? What’s wrong?”

He noticed that he still had a hold of Shi’s hand. He was about to reply nothing and let go when he noticed something partially hidden under Shi’s sleeve. “What is that?” He brushed his finger over the words ‘of Death’ and followed the twisting pattern before Shi yanked his arm back. Ensei looked at his face. 'It’s that damn blank mask again. What is he hiding?'

“Thanks for helping me up. Let’s go, Kouyuu and Shuurei-chan are leaving us behind.”

They walked in silence until catching up to Kouyuu and Shuurei, who was now going by ‘Shuu’. Ensei filed this interaction in the back of him mind with all of the other ones. A picture was forming, but he needed more proof to be sure.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After a short while longer, Shuurei finally broke down and asked someone for directions. Once they arrived at the Department, Yuri who had been lost in thought and walking behind the other three ran into Ensei’s back. “What? Why did you stop?” Kouyuu told them good luck and left them, which left a spot open for Yuri to find out what they were staring at. She looked around and didn’t see anything that garnered this much shock. “What are you two 'staring at'?”

They looked at her and were about to respond when another man came up and motioned for them to follow him. They stopped in front of the desk of the only other person in the room. The man they had been following spoke up, “My name is Kei Yuuri, I am the vice-chamberlain, and this is the Chamberlain of the Department, Ko Kijin.”

Yuri noticed that the other two seemed to be in shock, so she stepped forward and bowed respectfully. “It is nice to meet you. My name is Kazeno Shi, and my two companions are Ensei and Kou Shuu.” She waited for Ensei and Shuurei to bow, but they seemed to be frozen in shock. “Forgive them, I don’t know what has gotten into them.” She stood back up and slapped them on the backs of their heads and then whispered, “Oi, what are you two doing?”

She then noticed that all of them were staring at her in shock. 'Well I think Kijin-san is shocked, I can’t tell with the mask.' “What?” When no one answered her, she turned to look at the man behind the desk. “Did you have anything that you needed us to do?”

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yuri, Shuurei and Ensei were taking stacks of documents to another department when Shuurei couldn’t hold it in any longer. “Why weren’t you shocked?”

Yuri looked at her in confusion, “What do you mean? Shocked by what?”

Now Ensei spoke up. “The mask! You mean it really didn’t surprise you?”

Yuri thought for a moment before speaking. “Well it was a very well made mask, but why should it shock me?”

Ensei gaped at Shi. 'Does he seriously not find that even the least bit odd?'

Shuurei wasn’t faring much better, although her mind soon moved on. “I wonder what he is hiding under there. Maybe he is really hideous?”

Yuri looked at her out of the corner of her eye critically. “Would it make a difference if he was? Would you not want to work for him anymore?”

Shuurei looked at her in shock, “Why should looks matter? Looks, like gender, have nothing to do with a person’s ability to work.” Ensei looked towards Shuurei with approval shining in his eyes. “After all If I were to decide to work with someone based on looks, Ensei would have had me running a while ago.”

Yuri placed her hand on Shuurei’s head, ignoring Ensei’s protests in the background. “Good answer Shuu-kun. Now that we have that out of the way, I am also curious.” She had a thoughtful look on her face. 'Hmmm… I am very curious now that they brought it up though.'

“-i-kun. Shi-kun…” Yuri shook her head and looked at Shuurei.

“Yes?”

“We’re here.”

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The rest of the day was monumentally uninteresting if Yuri was honest. They ran from place to place with stacks of papers and scrolls. Granted, it was better than sitting around and doing nothing all day, but Yuri had to give credit to Shuurei for wanting to do this for a living. Needless to say, Yuri was relieved when they were done for the day. They said their goodbyes to Chamberlain Ko and Vice-Chaberlain Kei and began the walk back to the Kou Residence.

Once they made it back, they saw that Seiran was still out and Shouka had gotten there right before them. Shuurei began walking towards the kitchen, intent of starting dinner, when she called out to Shi. “Ne, Shi-kun, did you want to learn how to make dim sum?”

“Sure, thanks Shuurei-chan!” The two of them left Shouka and Ensei sitting on one of the porches outside. They made small talk as they waited for Seiran to get back. Once Seiran came and joined them on the porch, Ensei told them that he found something on Shi’s wrist.

Shouka looked at him, “What was it?”

“Well I couldn’t see the whole thing, as it was mainly covered by his clothing, but I did notice the words ‘of Death’ and then there was a swirling pattern going around to the other side of his wrist. Speaking of his wrist, have either of you noticed the size of his hands? Even on a 15 year old boy they should still be a good deal larger…”

The other two mean understood the subtle message. Seiran spoke up, “Do you think that…?”

“I think it is a good possibility. What do you think Shouka-san?”

“Hmmm… I think that we should keep this between ourselves, and not bring it up to Shi-kun. We already know that there is more to the story than what we were told, but how much more?”

The other two nodded and then all three of them sat their contemplating the mystery of the ‘boy’ Shi.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That night, Yuri and Ensei went out to take down some of the bandits, like usual. They came upon a clearing and decided to stop and wait for the bandits to come to them. Yuri wasn’t stupid, she knew that the bandits were after someone, most likely the man beside her, but she didn’t pry, respecting him the same way he was her.

They only had to wait for a few moments before a group of about 10 bandits came charging out of the clearing. With a nod to each other Yuri and Ensei darted into the mob, Ensei was knocking them out using his staff, Yuri taking out the others with her sword. Regardless of the name she was going by, she did not enjoy killing others, so when she got the chance, she used the hilt of her sword to knock the out.

She finished knocking out her opponents and was waiting for Ensei to finish up, she never noticed that one of the men she had thought was unconscious got back up and slowly crept towards her while unsheathing a knife. She realized he was there too late to fully dodge and wound up with the blade in her shoulder. She knocked the man back and pulled the knife out of her shoulder. 'Thank god I am wearing a black top.'

They circled each other for a moment before Yuri threw the knife and hit the man in his throat. He fell down futilely clasping his hands around the wound.

“Good throw.” Ensei was gathering the all of the unconscious, but still alive, bandits into a pile.

Yuri acknowledged the statement with a nod and helped him finish up. She ignored the pain in her shoulder until she could get somewhere to patch it up. Ensei put the last man with the others before turning to her, “Alright, let’s head back.”

Due to it being so dark, he never noticed the wet spot on her shirt getting larger, nor did he notice the blood dripping off of her hand.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The next day Yuri went with Seiran to help the army gather up more of the bandits. As they were working, Seiran captured one of them and questioned him. When he heard that they were looking for a man with a cross-shaped scar on his face, he wasn’t overly surprised. Then he heard that other bandits who had come back after trying to get to Ensei were warning everyone that someone was helping Ensei; Seiran asked for a description.

“Apparently, he’s a tiny little thing, but damn good with his blade. They say he has green eyes that draw you in and warn you away at the same time. Don’t know much else about him though, no one knows anything about his name or where he’s from.” Seiran nodded for one of the soldiers to take him away and then went to find his green eyed companion. He found Shi a little bit away from the group of soldiers, sharpening his sword.

He had only been standing there for a moment when he saw Shi wince and put a hand to his shoulder. “What’s wrong? Did someone get a hit in?”

Yuri turned to look at Seiran surprised that he snuck up on her. “No, it’s just a little sore.”

“I’m not surprised. I just heard about a duo that has been taking on bandits at night, and one of the two fits your description…”

Yuri chuckled a little. “Was there a point to that statement?”

“No… I am wondering though… Why would you help someone you just met? At the risk of your own life?”

Yuri just gazed at him for a moment.” I guess because there was rarely anyone ever willing to help me. I know what it is like to handle things on your own, even with the odds against you. To face an enemy greater than yourself with no one helping you. No one deserves to be put through that.” Then she smirked, “Plus I have been told that I can’t help but try to save others, even above myself. They called it a ‘Save the people thing’.”

Seiran could see the genuine humor shining in his eyes. “Who is ‘they’?”

He watched as the humor and laughter died in Shi’s eyes, “who they are doesn’t matter. I’ll never see them again anyways.”

He felt bad for her, but he had to ask. “Are they dead?”

“No… they are just somewhere that I can never reach them.” Yuri went to stand up since she noticed that the group was heading back for the day when she stumbled and felt her head spinning.

Seiran caught the boy against him. “Are you really alright? A sore shoulder shouldn’t do this to you.”

Yuri waved off his concern and stood straight, “No, it must just be a combination of the heat and little sleep; I’ll be fine.” Yuri noticed that he looked at her with doubt, but he seemed to accept her excuse for now. 'I wish I would have had Madam Pomfrey teach me some healing spells.'

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The next several days went much the same way with Yuri switching between working with Shuurei and Ensei, and then with Seiran. Her wound wasn’t healing all that well, but she didn’t want to burden anyone with it so she just kept changing the bandage and tried keeping it clean.

She was currently running errands with Shuurei; Ensei had gone off on a different errand, when she felt someone watching them. She looked to the side and saw Kouyuu and Shuuei talking. She balanced her load in one of her arms and waved to them. Shuuei smiled and waved back while Kouyuu scowled and looked away. Shuurei had turned to watch when Yuri stopped and laughed at Kouyuu’s reaction. “He must still be upset from when you scolded him.”

Yuri grinned at the young woman beside her and giggled, “Yeah I guess he is. It’s adorable that he is holding a grudge.”

They indulged in another moment of laughing before continuing on their way. Yuri listened to Shuurei gush about working in the Palace, when Yuri interrupted her. “Shuurei-chan… Why do you want to be a government official so badly? It seems like the majority of the people that work here are jerks, why would you want to work with them?”

Shuurei looked thoughtful for a moment before answering. “It’s not that I want to work with them. I want to do what I can to help my country prosper and succeed. I want to help achieve as peaceful a time as we can get. I see those who have no home or money to speak of, those that starve, and I want to find a way to help them. Kids are left abandoned every day, and no one wants to take them in and help them, I want to do something for them. There are so many things that could be done that are never brought to anyone’s attention, whether it’s because of greed, or ignorance. If I can, I want to point out those things so that something can be done… Does that make sense?” Shuurei looked at Shi as she finished.

She was happy to see respect and warmth in his eyes. “Yes it makes perfect sense. I hope that one day you can achieve your dreams Shuurei-chan. There are probably a lot of people out there waiting for someone to hear and understand their problems; the problems that you just pointed out. Those are excellent reasons to want to work in the government; you don’t want prestige, or money. Knowing that those ideas will possibly gain you enemies, would you still be willing to reach for your goals?”

“Yes.”

“Then when it comes time, and I know it will, I will help you in any way I can.” Shuurei was astonished when Shi bowed his head to her.

“Why would you do that? You haven’t known me for that long.”

“Because there should be more people like you in this world.” Yuri began walking towards their destination.

Shuurei stood there for a moment longer due to her shock and then she walked to catch up to Shi. 'Shi is an interesting person.'

They walked in silence, Shuurei a step behind Yuri, when they finally reached the Archives, where Shouka was.

Shuurei smiled when she saw her father there, “Tou-sa- I mean Shouka-sama, we came to return these for Chamberlain Ko.”

Yuri squeaked when Ensei popped out from behind one of the book cases. “Don’t worry Hime-san, we are the only ones here right now. Oh Shi, how is it going?”

Yuri giggled as she responded, “So this is where you have been hiding out, Ensei. We were wondering what had been taking you so long to get back.”

Ensei rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Eh… why don’t I help you two with those books?”

The three of them set about getting everything put away while talking about how it was working for Chamberlain Ko.

Shuurei was organizing a pile as she talked. “I am just worried that any day now someone will discover that I am a girl.” 'You and I both,' thought Yuri.

Ensei and Yuri were side by side putting books back on the shelves as Ensei spoke, “Don’t worry, didn’t Kouyuu-san-”

Yuri cut him off before he said something stupid. “No one has said anything yet about being suspicious, so that has to be a good indication that no one has noticed right Ensei?” She glared at him out of the corner of her eye.

Ensei felt a bead of sweat roll down his forehead at the look he was getting from Shi. “Ah, r-right.” 'Scary.'

Shuurei was oblivious to the interaction between the two of them. “But, Chamberlain Ko is a brilliant person. He will have to notice sooner or later.”

Ensei thought about what to say but then looked to Shi for some help.

Yuri took pity on the man next to her, “Don’t worry Shuurei, if someone does find out, we will deal with it then. Don’t anticipate it happening or it will for sure.”

Shuurei looked a little happier after that and they spent the rest of their day talking about random things.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Later that night, Kouyuu and Shuuei came to the Residence to eat with them. Ensei was scarfing down everything in sight while the rest of him just stared with expression ranging from amusement to exasperation. The rest of them were eating normally, but Shuurei noticed that Shi wasn’t eating very much at all. “Shi-kun, are you feeling alright? You aren’t eating very much…”

Yuri was taking deep breathes trying to quell the rolling of her stomach. “No I’m alright Shuurei-chan; I think I have just been stretching myself too thin. Seiran, I think tomorrow I will just go work with them at the Department, I don’t think I want to risk fighting if I still feel like this tomorrow.”

“That’s alright, but should you just stay here tomorrow?”

“No, I’m sure I’ll be well enough to run some simple errands.”

“Mmm…”

Shuurei looked like she had just experienced an epiphany. “That’s right! Seiran, you must be exhausted just like Shi-kun! Make sure you eat enough! You too Shi-kun, try to eat a little more, I’m sure it will help!”

Yuri and Seiran look at each other. “O-okay.”

Yuri begins to feel worse the longer she sits there, barely even registering the conversations going on around her. The next thing she knows, Shouka is standing next to her with a hand on her shoulder. “Why don’t you go rest, you are looking a little pale. Here, I’ll help you up.”

No one would dispute the fact that Yuri was stubborn, but even she could accept help from time to time. “Thank you Shouka-sama.”

Shouka thought that Shi’s skin felt warm, so he brought it up as he walked the boy back to his room, but he just waved the concern aside, “I’m just a little tired Shouka-sama; I’ll be fine after I sleep. Thank you for caring.” Shouka waited until he heard the boy crawl into his bed before walking off.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The next day, Shuurei was organizing things in the Department of Treasury and Taxation while Ensei and Yuri were delivering some paperwork to other departments. Yuri still felt weak, but thanks to Ensei not waking her up to go apprehend some of the bandits, she got a full night’s sleep which helped a little.

“Shi, I think you should have stayed at the manor today, you still look pale.”

“I’m fine Ensei. How did last night go?”

Ensei made a dramatic pose, “Oh, I missed you sorely my dear fighting companion! You missed a truly spectacular showing last night! There were 15 bandits and two of them thought- oi, do you need to sit down?”

Yuri was leaning against the wall panting. “Y-yeah I think I should. I’ll be over there in that garden for a little while, if anyone comes looking for me.”

Ensei grabbed her half of the load, “Just go, I’ll come get you in a little while.”

“Thank you Ensei.” He just nodded and walked off.

Yuri stumbled to the garden and sat down against one of the trees there. She closed her eyes to try to get rid of the tunnel-vision, and sat in that position for several minutes. Someone gently cleared their throat and Yuri’s eyes flew open, alert for danger.

Standing a few feet away, she noticed a man, she would guess around her age if not a little older, standing there. He had long blondish hair and was very fine clothes. He spoke first. “Who are you?”

“My name is Kazeno Shi… Forgive me, I would stand up and bow but then I would probably fall right back down. What is your name?”

Ryuuki was shocked. He knew that not too long ago, very few people had actually seen him and know who he was, but now that he was actually doing his duties, most everyone knew him by sight now. 'Well he will surely recognize my name.' “Shi Ryuuki.”

“It’s nice to meet you Ryuuki-san. I would ask if you were temporary help as well, but I think you are too finely dressed for that. So what do you do?”

“I am the Emperor.”

“Heh, very funny! No really, I won’t judge you, what do you do?”

“…”

“Oh shit, you’re serious? Well, you’re not going to cut off my head for not being respectful and bowing or something like that are you?”

Ryuuki looked at the boy in front of him, wondering at his mental health. “Why would I do that when it is obvious that first of all you didn’t know who I was, and secondly, you are obviously ill?”

Shi shrugged nonchalantly, “It wouldn’t be the first time someone has abused their power towards me. What makes you any different?”

Ryuuki was taken aback. 'He reminds me of me as a child.' “Well if Shuurei-chan ever found out I did something like that, she would hate me…”

Shi looked at him consideringly, “Would you happen to be talking about Kou Shuurei?”

Ryuuki’s head snapped up. “How do you know Shuurei?! Has she forgotten about me and moved on to you? I need to send her more gifts, she can’t forget about me…”

Yuri sat there listening to the 'Emperor' switch between whining and plotting before putting him out of his misery. “Ne, Emperor Shi, we are not like that. If anything I am beginning to view Shuurei as a sibling.”

“REALLY?!? So Shuurei hasn’t forgotten about me?”

“Eh… I don’t know.”

“No! SHUUREI!”

Yuri felt bemusement swell within her. “You are weird Emperor Shi”

“Just call me Ryuuki when we are alone, please?” Yuri noticed that he had a weird pleading look in his eyes. It was almost desperation.

“Why? Isn’t that cause for execution or something?” The kicked-puppy look did her in. “How about if I called you Ryuuki-san?”

Yuri could almost see the perky ears and wagging tail. “Okay! And I will call you Shi-kun! We can be friends!”

“O…kay?” Yuri thought about it and realized, that as an emperor, he probably didn’t have anyone that saw him as a real person. “Okay, Ryuuki-san. So, you like Shuurei-chan?”

His eyes were 'sparkling'… Yuri wasn’t so sure that the man in front of her was completely sane. Yuri let him babble for a while as she just sat there relaxing.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yuri woke up suddenly and looked around. 'I guess the Emperor had to get back to work.' She began heading back towards her temporary work place, feeling a little better. She soon ran into Shuurei walking behind a man who looked like he could be a relative of hers. 'Maybe he is her uncle? But she never mentioned any…' As she got closer, she heard the man ask Shuurei to call him ‘Uncle’. 'Bingo. She must not know though? But that means that he knows that ‘Shuu’ is really Shuurei?' When Shuurei called him ‘uncle’ he got this ecstatic look on his face.

'Should I mess with him a little?' She thought about how to go about it. '…Got it!'  
“Shuuuurei-chaaan! I’ve been looking for you! I was wondering, what are you going to cook for dinner tonight?” Yuri could practically feel the waves of jealousy coming off of the man.

Shuurei turned and looked at her, “Hi Shi-kun! Did you want anything in particular to eat?”

'Bless you Shuurei, that was perfect.' “Weelll… you know that I love your sweet bean buns right? They are one of my favorites out of everything you have made for me!”

Shuurei thought about if they had everything she would need at home, completely missing the looks between the other two.

Kou Reishin did not like how familiar this man was acting towards his niece! He would not allow it!

Yuri was dying from laughter on the inside, the man probably thought that Yuri was attracted to Shuurei. That or ‘he’ was just acting to familiar with her. 'Go me.'

Shuurei seemed to have finished thinking as she replied, “Sure! I think that we have everything we need!”

Yuri decided to put the man out of his misery, preferably before he had a vein burst in his forehead. “Hey Shuurei-chan, I will meet you back at the department, yeah? I want to ask him about some of the other departments here, and I don’t want you to get yelled at for being late.”

“Ok, see you later Shi-kun!” She took the stack from the still fuming man and ran off with a smile on her face.

Before the man could say anything to her, Yuri laughed. “You know, you have nothing to worry about, I don’t see her that way.”

The man sniffed, “I have no idea what you are talking about.” He opened his fan and put it in front of his face.

“Let’s start over. Hello, my name is Kazeno Shi, your brother, at least I assume he is your brother, is allowing me to stay with him and his daughter for now. I have nowhere else to go, so they graciously opened their home for me.” She looked him dead in the eyes, “And your name is Kou…?”

He looked at her suspiciously with a bit of grudging admiration. “Reishin. How did you know?”

“Well you look like Shouka-sama and Shuurei. Plus I heard you ask Shuurei to call you ‘Uncle’.” She grinned. “When you made that face when she called you Uncle, I just had to mess with you a little bit, thus the whole thing that just happened.”

He managed to look affronted and amused at the same time. Yuri laughed until she noticed his faced adopted a sort of seriousness. “You won’t tell her will you?”

“It’s not my place to, but why haven’t you told her?”

He just sniffed at her again and closed his fan as he began to walk off. He paused and looked over her shoulder, “I can’t. Maybe I will tell you why sometime in the future. Good-bye Kazeno Shi.”

“Good-bye Reishin-sama.” 'I wonder what happened?' Yuri started walking to where Shuurei had gone.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When Yuri arrived at the Department of Treasury and Taxation, the only ones there were Shuurei and Chamberlain Ko. The latter was sleeping on the couch while the former was playing with his hair. Yuri stifled a giggle. She quietly walked up to Shuurei and touched her shoulder.

Shuurei whipped around and saw that Shi come back from his talk with ‘Uncle’. He smiled at her, “What were you doing Shuurei-chan?”

Shuurei gasped, “Oh, Shi-kun, his hair is so silky! I couldn’t resist touching it!” He laughed softly at her.

“Well lets go work on organizing some of this and let him rest, ne?”

Shuurei nodded and stood up. As she was brushing off her clothes, she heard thunder in the distance and froze. She knew that Shi-kun had walked over to her, “Shuurei-chan? What’s wrong?” but she was too terrified to move. At the first sign of lightning, Shuurei threw herself at the closest person, and that happened to be Shi-kun. She didn’t remember much after that.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To say that Yuri was shocked when Shuurei knocked her to the ground and started bawling was an understatement. She felt pain shoot through her shoulder and the last thing she thought was 'shit, it opened up again.'

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Once the storm passed, Shuurei calmed down enough to realize that she was clinging to Shi-kun… and that his chest was way too soft for a man. 'No way…' She slowly got up and was about to say something when she heard something hit the floor. She turned around and saw Chamberlain Ko, Vice-Chamberlain Kei, and Ensei standing with the latter two looking at them in shock. Forgetting about the fact that the man below her was actually a woman, she waved her hands in front of herself. “It’s not what it looks like! Honest! I was ju-”

Ensei interrupted her, “What is on your hand?”

She looked down and saw red liquid on her hands. She looked back up at Ensei, “I think Shi-kun is bleeding…” As if realizing what she said, Shuurei jumped off of Shi and began looking for the injury.

Ensei joined her down on the ground while Chamberlain Ko sent his Vice-Chamberlain to get some help. Ensei looked up at that and asked him to go get Shouka. Kei hesitated before Ko nodded his approval.

Ko Kijin looked at Ensei before asking, “Is there a reason you sent for Kou Shouka instead of an official doctor?”

Ensei looked up and was about to say something when Shuurei exclaimed that she found where the blood was coming from. Ensei wasted no time in ripping the shirt down the middle. Even with his suspicions, what he saw shocked him.

Kijin softly said, “A woman…” as Shuurei gasped.

There, lying on the floor was Kazeno Shi with bindings around her chest. The white bandages around her shoulder were mostly red with her blood. Ensei carefully removed the bandage; what he saw made him even more worried. “Shit, it’s infected! Him- no, Shuu-kun, go find me some sake and a bucket of water. Chamberlain Ko, do you have anything I can use for cloth to clean with?”

A new voice interrupted anything Ko was about to say; “Here use this.”

Ensei looked up and found Kouyuu and Shuuei standing there with Shouka and Kei behind them. While Kouyuu looked shocked, Shuuei only looked focused on the wound. Ensei grabbed to cloth as he stated, “You knew.”

Shuuei nodded, “Since I first met her. She knows that I know. Do not ask me for her name; that is something I will let her tell you.” Ensei nodded and took the alcohol and water from Shuurei when she came back in.

Shouka knelt next to him and together they cleaned and re-bandaged the wound. They saw a large number of scars, just on the skin that was showing on her stomach, arms, and above the bindings. There were more on her back and one that looked like letters of some kind on her upper back, but they couldn’t read it. They all looked towards Chamberlain Ko who turned his head slightly to the side and stated that he saw nothing except a wounded worker. Shouka nodded his thanks and together with Ensei, who was carrying Shi, Shuurei, Kouyuu, and Shuuei left to go back to the Kou Residence.

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Ko Kijin and Kou Reishin where in Kijin’s house later that night and Kijin had just finished telling Reishin about the woman Kazeno Shi. “So she had been injured and still working? Stubborn girl. I am surprised you didn’t know she was a woman from the beginning like you did my cute Shuurei-chan, Kijin.”

“Hmph, she does not act like any woman I have ever met, your niece included.”

“True, I think the same. Plus, no one could ever be like my Cute Niece! She is a one of a kind!”

“Oh, is that so? Maybe I should marry her then…”

Reishin whirled around and glared at the man who has been one of his closest friends for years. “I will never allow that to happen!” He then threw his new creation and Kijin and told him all about the new mask.

Kijin’s angry shout scared any who heard it.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Shouka, Shuuei, Shuurei, Ensei and Seiran were sitting in the same room that ‘Shi’ was in, passed out on the bed. Kouyuu had had to go back to help the Emperor so he couldn’t be there. 

They were conversing quietly so as to avoid waking the patient up. Seiran was looking at Shuuei. “You knew from the beginning? How?”

Shuuei gave a lopsided grin and simply said, “Experience. Lots of it.”

Shouka coughed. “Moving on, how did she react when you told her?”

“Honestly? She was very calm. At least on the outside she was. She didn’t seem worried that I found out; only that it would become common knowledge.”

Ensei hummed. “Why would that be her main concern?”

A rough voice spoke up, “Because, I didn’t know enough about this country and what would be bset; I decided that my best bet was to temporarily hide my gender. Thank you all for taking care of me, I guess my wound got the best of me…”

“How long have you had it?”

She looked up at the ceiling, “Since the first night after Shuurei, Ensei, and I began working in the court.”

Their eyes widened and Shuurei gasped, “But that’s been over a week! The infection should have killed you by now, right?”

Yuri looked at her thoughtfully, “Normally, yes. But I have had much worse.”

They all looked a variation of angry, concerned, and sad. Well Shuurei was the only one who looked sad, the others were more angry.

Shuuei spoke up. “How much worse?”

Yuri looked around at everyone before looking at Ensei and Seiran. “You remember when I said ‘Gain my trust, gain the story’?” They nodded. “Well I trust everyone in this room and Kouyuu of course. And I suppose the Emperor should know from me instead of second hand from all of you. So why don’t we plan a little get together and I will tell everyone at the same time. But I can tell you this. If, after I tell you guys, I feel threatened or in any sort of danger from you-”

Everyone went to interrupt her. “Stop. You say that won’t happen now, but I warn you that my story is long and incredibly confusing, not to mention unbelievable. So as I was saying, if any of you knowingly put me in danger, I will disappear. I hope you won’t but I have to give you fair warning. Please don’t abuse my trust, it is very fragile.” She sighed. “Let me know when and where we are meeting and I will be there, just make sure we have a lot of time and a lot of privacy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo…. What do you think? I hope I am not rushing into Yuri telling her secret(s) but remember that there are time lapses within the story, so she has known them for a while now, plus they haven’t done anything to make her not trust them.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed! Oh and the length of the chapters will, obviously, vary each time! So don’t get spoiled with this one, cause it is 6,500 some-odd words! (not counting The AN’s)
> 
> Hope to hear from you! :D
> 
> ~GG


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: If I owned HP OR SM I would not be apartment searching, or working, and would be driving a brand new car instead of a used one!
> 
> ENJOY!!!

They all looked at Yuri with confused expressions. Shuurei spoke up, "I understand the privacy, but why do we need so much time?"

Yuri laughed, "There are a few things I need to explain first and I get the feeling that there will be A LOT of questions. Trust me." They all just nodded. "So I am guessing that I shouldn't do anything strenuous for a while... which means no fighting?"

Shuurei's eyes glinted, "Absolutely NO fighting. Or heavy lifting."

Yuri shivered, 'Damn, it looks like I found the Madam Pomphrey of this world.' "But I'll be bored! Isn't there something I can do?" 

Although Yuri would never admit it, when it came to being restricted in what she could and could not do, she became... whiny.

Shuurei opened her mouth to reject any foolish ideas but was cut off by her father.

"Why don't you come and help me in the library tomorrow?"

Yuri, being as smart as she was knew not to anger Shuurei, so she glanced to the younger girl hoping for approval. Shuurei thought about it for a moment before deciding that it should be safe enough. "Oh, alright. It should be fine."

"Yes!" She smiled and laughed, "Thank you for saving me from that torture Shouka-sama!"

"You are welcome. Now I think it best that we all turn it, it is fairly late after all and Shuuei-sama still has to get back." With that, they all bid each other goodnight and seperated. Yuri lost her smile and sighed as she lay back down. 'This will be fun. How to explain everything?'

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Working in the library was actually fairly interesting to Yuri. When there was no one that needed her help she would pick a book on Saiunkoku, be it the history or inner workings, and read. When she wasn't reading she would just talk to Shouka about random things, or she would ask him about something they read.

Occasionally Shuuei and Kouyuu would stop by for one thing or another and everytime they told her that they were having trouble finding a time to get everyone together. She would just shrug and say, "It's not like I'm leaving any time soon."

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One day, she was drinking tea with Shouka outside when she saw Shuurei and Ensei leave with a water bucket. She looked at Shouka out of the side of her eye and noticed he looked slightly depressed. She took another sip of the daddy-tea (as dubbed by Shuurei) and sighed resisting the urge to ask about it. They sat in silence for a few moments before Shouka decided to break it.

"You are curious about where they are going aren't you?"

"Honestly, yes but I don't have to know."

He shrugged, "It's not that it's a secret, we just don't talk about it." He rubbed a hand down his face and looked at her. "I am sure you have guessed, but my wife, Shuurei's mother, died. Tomorrow is that anniversary, and Shuurei has gone to clean her grave."

"Ah."

He seemed to perk up slightly, "Would you like to hear about her?"

Yuri smiled gently at his look. 'He must have been one to marry out of love.' "If you want to tell me, I would love to listen."

He smiled happily and began to talk. "We don't talk much about her becuase I feel like Shuurei somehow blames herself for her mother's death, and so it hurts her sometimes to talk about it. Her name was Shoukun. She was absolutely beautiful..." He went on to tell her about Shoukun's lack of cooking ability, that she more that made up for with her love and caring, and how she loved climbing trees and picking the fruit there. "One day, she just fell ill and never recovered." They were both silent for a few moments.

Yuri looked at the sky before returning her gaze to Shouka. "Why does Shuurei blame herself?" She gasped and backpedaled, "Not that you have to answer, it's really none-"

Shouka waved a hand to clam down her babbling. "Shuurei blames herself because after her Shoukun passed away, she was healthy again. She was convinced that she somehow stole her mother's health."

Yuri huffed, "Ridiculous!"

Shouka laughed quietly, "That's what I have told her any time she brought it up."

"Shoukun-sama sounds like she was the best kind of woman and mother." Yuri smiled and leaned back onto her elbows, looking at the clouds. "I am sure she is watching after both you and Shuurei even in death."

Shouka just 'hmmm'ed thoughfully and they once more enjoyed their peaceful silence.

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With her shoulder finally healed up, she rejoined Ensei and Shuurei at the palace the next time they went. They were slightly worried that Chamberlain Ko would rat Yuri out about being a woman, but all she said is, "I'll deal with it if it comes to that, but considering no one else has said anything yet, I doubt we need to worry at all."

She was right, Ko Kijin looked at her for a moment before telling them where a stack of documents needed to be delivered. Yuri went to go pick up her stack and whispered lowly, "Thank you Chamberlain Ko."

He just 'hmph'ed and replied, "I have no idea what you are talking about." He then waved her off and started writing again.

Yuri laughed and waved on her way out.

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They just finished a delivery and were going back for more work when they heard someone shout, "They went over there!"

They heard a crash and ran the rest of the way to Chamberlain Ko's Department.

Kijin and Kei were just staring at the two rough looking bandits.

"Wait a minute. What's going on?" Shuurei asked. When the bandits looked their way, Yuri pushed Shuurei behind her and Ensei. She began to protest, "Hey! What-"

Yuri hushed her, "Not now Shuurei, we will explain later."

She quieted down at that.

The bandits looked from Yuri to Ensei. The first one spoke up, "That scar... and those eyes..."

The second one charged, "You bastards!" The first bandit was soon to follow.

Ensei and Yuri both ran forward. Ensei grabbed a nearby chair and swung it from the ground up to the closest bandit. It slammed into the bandits hand and the man dropped his sword. Before he could go for it Ensei reversed the direction he was swinging the chair and smashed it onto the man's head.

At the same time, Yuri went for the other bandit. He swung hi sword at her sloppily and she easily dodged it by ducking. He had put to much force into it and slight lost his balance. that was all the time she needed to kick up into his stomach. With him already being off balance he fell backwards, dazed and out of breath. Yuri stood up and kicked his sword out of his hand before turing him on his back. She hit him in a certain spot on the back of his neck to knock him out.

Yuri and Ensei looked over at each other and smiled. Ensei started laughing, "It's good to ahve my fighting partner back!"

Yuri just kept smiling as she shook her head at him. "Men... We should probably tie them up..."

As soon as they finished that, the guards arrived and Vice-Chamberlain Kei went with them to explain what had happened.

Yuri, Ensei, and Shuurei were standing by Kijin's desk. As soon as the others left, Kijin spoke up. "It seems that they have found out your location. Before the night is out, a large number of unwelcome guests will come for you." He glanced at Yuri. "For the both of you i suspect." Ensei and Yuri looked at each other and then at Kijin. "You should use my manor."

Ensei just looked at him confused and said, "Eh?"

Yuri looked at Ensei's face and laughed, "Ensei you can be such an idiot! I am sure that he is allowing us to use his manor so that we don't ruin Shouka-sama's estate. Ne, Chamberlain Ko?"

"That is correct."

Ensei closed his mouth that had dropped open in shock. "OH! Thanks a lot!" he then turned to look at Shuurei. "While we're at it, why doesn't Shuu-kun come along?"

Shuurei looked hopelessly confused.

Yuri just pat her on the head, "Don't worry, we will leave a letter at the house."

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At the Kou Estate (AN: I just love this part, ;3 thus why I am adding it!)

"Wh-Wh-What are you talking about?!" Shi Ryuuki, Emperor of Saiunkoku looked at the crumpled up note in his hand once more, shaking uncontrollably. Shouka, Seiran, Kouyuu, and Shuuei surrounded him.

Shouka said, "I am very sorry, but I was going to tell my daughter that Your Majesty was coming over once she came home."

"What terrible luck." Stated Shuuei unhelpfully.

"Why don't you give up and go back to the palace." Was Kouyuu's suggestion.

Ryuuki threw his arms up, "SHUT UP!!!" he then looked at Shuuei and Kouyuu, "Why are you all gathered here anyways?!"

They both looked away and thought at the same time thinking, 'Well...because it seemed interesting of course...'

Ryuuki grabbed the note in both hands and looked at it again. "Fine! We are going over to that manor! And who exactly is this Ensei?"

Seiran finally spoke up, "He's an old friend of mine..." Ryuuki looked at him. "He is now living here without paying us... I suppose I'll go too." He readjusted his sword on his hip. "If anyone else wants to go, make sure to bring your swords."

Shuuei looked at him, "What do you mean?"

"Those bandits that came from Sa Province... seem to be pursuing a certain man, but our freeloader has a feature very similar to that person's. I'm sure they have mistaken him for that person."

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Back with Yuri and Co.

Yuri, Ensei, Shuurei, and Kijin were sitting calmly around a table drinking tea and eating sweet bean buns. Shuurei looked confused while the other three were perfectly relaxed.

Ensei put his tea down and broke the silence. "As expected from Chamberlain Ko. This is indeed a splendid manor, ne Shuurei, Shi?"

Shuurei just looked at him as if he were insane while Yuri calmly answered. "Yes it really is, Chamberlain Ko. And this tea is wonderful!"

Ensei continued, "In fact, with a place as nice as this, the garden must also be magnificent! Would you mind if I went and looked?"

Shuurei gasped his name as Kijin said, "Do as you like."

Ensei stood up, "Well, I'll be off now!"

He began to walk out when Yuri spoke up, "Hold on Ensei, I'll join you! With your permission of course, Chamberlain Ko?"

Kijin looked over at her and simply nodded his head as he wondered why a woman excelled at fighting as she seemed to.

Yuri got up from the table and the two of them went outside. They went to a empty part of the yard and waited for the bondits to show up.

"It'll be soon, don't you think Ensei?"

"Yeah, anytime now."

As they were waiting, they heard a noise by the wall and grabbed there weapons, sure it was the bandits arriving. They then relaxed as they saw Seiran and Shuuei jump down. Ensei laid his staff on his shoulder while Yuri just relaxed the grip on her sword.

Ensei grinned at them, "You've come just as I expected, Seiran."

Yuri laughed, "Shuuei you decided to come join the party as well?"

Ensei outright laughed, "That's right! I expected you to come, Seiran, but i didn't expect you to come with this many people."

Shuuei looked over to Yuri and smirked, "Of course, that little snippit of your skill that you showed me only made me curious as to what you can do Shi-'kun'." Yuri snorted at him.

Ryuuki jumped down, "You're Ensei, right?" Then he looked over to Yuri, "Shi? What are you doing here? Are you feeling better?"

Yuri looked between Ryuuki, Shuuei, and Kouyuu, who was still on the top of the wall, not yet ready to jump down. "Have you told him yet?"

Kouyuu shook his head, "He was to busy that night when I got back and then it slipped my mind."

Ryuuki looked confused as Yuri answered, "Well I guess after this there are quite a few things that need to be cleared up, yeah?"

Ryuuki decided to let it drop as he turned back to the only face he didn't recognize, "Well, are you Ensei or not?"

Ensei just looked at him and then said, "Oh... That's a new face..."

Ryuuki just looked at him with frustration, "What grudge do you bear to cause such a nuisance to us- I mean me?" He looked ready to lunge at Ensei and Shuuei walked up behind him and laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Now, now. Calm down, Your Majesty!"

Ensei tilted his head to the side and muttered, "Your Majesty?"

Yuri was the only one that heard him since she was right next to him. "Yeah, that's the Emperor." She whispered to him.

Before he could respond they heard a thump and a groan. They all looked over to see that Kouyuu finally jumped down from the wall, although his landing was lacking... well landing. He was in a pile on the ground groaning.

"I know it's a bother to you Vice-Chamberlain Li," Ensei started once he was sitting up, "but our Hime-san and Chamberlain Ko are in that detatched room over there. I'm counting on you to explain the situation."

Kouyuu, who was standing at this point nodded. "I got it."

Yuri pouted. "Aww, Kouyuu you're going to miss all of the fun!"

Kouyuu just looked at her weirdly and walked off, wondering why she was referring to him to familiarly but deciding not to say anything.

Ryuuki airily said, "I would like to see Shuurei's face as well..." and started walking off before Seiran grabbed his shoulder with a blank face.

"Oi, you... what did we come here for?"

Ryuuki let out a bereaved sigh. "To help out."

Yuri laughed, "Don't sound too excited, Ryuuki!" Everyone still outside looked at her in shock... Ryuuki even more so. Yuri tilted her head and asked what she did.

Seiran opened his mouth but Ensei cut him off. "They've arrived."

The five of them stood shoulder to shoulder facing the wall as a group of bandits dropped down. Yuri and Ensei adjusted their grips on their already drawn weapons while Shuuei, Seiran, and Ryuuki drew theirs.

The bandits started charging while Yuri just stated, "And now the fun begins."

Just before a bandit reached Yuri, she heard Seiran exasperatedly say to Ensei, "Honestly... Didn't I tell you not to cause trouble? And you Shi, why are you encouraging him?"

Ensei answered first, "That's why I borrowed this manor!"

"...Cause it's fun to see you're reaction of course, Seiran!" Yuri happily answered.

He just sighed as he told her, "And you are a troublesome woman!"

That threw Ryuuki off balance, but he recovered quickly, "Shi, you are a WOMAN?"

"Yup!"

"..." Ryuuki defeated his current opponent before looking towards her, "This is one of the things to be cleared up?"

"That's Right!"

Just then they both heard Seiran and Ensei talking about how Shuurei was brought into this because the bandits saw her with Ensei.

Ryuuki remembered his earlier question as he locked swords with his opponent, "And who are you supposed to be?!"

Yuri tuned out the rest of the conversation as her current opponent got his sword a little to close for comfort. Their swords locked a few times before the bandit took a wild swing to her head. She used her sword to knock his away from her face. His arm swung wide and she used the hilt of hers to hit him in the neck before he could recover. He fell to the ground where she made sure he stayed down before looking for her next bandit. She saw Ensei take out one that was coming from behind him and noticed that everyone else was finishing their fights with the last conscious bandits.

Moments after Ryuuki knocked out the last one, Kouyuu came out, "Looks like its over." Shuurei was walking behind him.

"Yup!" Kouyuu and Shuurei looked over to Yuri who had answered. She was dragging the last bandit, by his feet, over the the group that was already tied up together. Shuurei just stood there in shock until she heard an awfully familiar voice call her name. "SHUUUREI!!!"

Yes, the Emperor of Saiunkoku was running towards her with his arms spread wide for a hug. "EH? What are you doing here?" A hug which it seems he would not get.

He put his arms down. "What do you mean why?"

"What on Earth is going on here?" She looked around, "Where is Ensei?"

Yuri looked up from where whe was tying in the last bandit, and pointed of the to side negligently, "Oh, he went that way a while ago."

Ryuuki was, for once, successfully distracted from Shuurei. "Well as the person who caused all of this, he shouldn't be wandering off!"

"I'm right here." They all looked over to where Ensei had reappeared. He had shaven off his scruffy beard and looked years younger!

Ryuuki and Shuurei just tilted their heads and asked who he was while Yuri laughed lightly and ran over to him. "Aww, you look precious like that!" She pinched his cheeks and laughed when he tried to escape.

Seiran watched this and felt some odd feeling rise, but not knowing what it was, he pushed it aside.

Ensei slapped at her hands playfully, "Just cause you want doesn't mean you can touch."

Yuri pinched his cheeks again and snorted, "Not my type sweetheart, you are firmly in the Older Brother section of my life."

Ensei groaned jokingly, "Seriously? What did i do to deserve that?"

"Oh don't be such a baby, you know I feel like a little sister to you, don't lie!"

"Ah well, what a loss." The he turned serious and walked up to Ruuki.

Ryuuki looking confused, "W-What is it?"

Ensei took a step back and knelt down. "As circumstances required me to take leave of the role of aide during your coronation, this is the first time I have met you in person. I am the Governor of Sa Province, Ro Ensei!"

Shuurei leaned forward a little and exclaimed, "Governor of Sa Province?!"

Shuuei and Seiran while Kouyuu had already known and Yuri just didn't care about such things, as obvious to her speaking so familiarly with the Emperor. Well, unless in a public setting, no one could say she was that ignorant. She knew when to act properly.

Kouyuu spoke up, "Even though he didn't take the Imperial Examination, he was selected as a Provincial High Official. He is an unprecedented exception."

Ryuuki recovered and turned into his 'Emperor-mode', "Anyways, what brings the Governor of Sa Province here?"

Ensei went on to explain how because the Sa Clan had acted in the past, when their clan head, Sa Enjun, had come to the capital to work with the previous Emperor. They had been bribing some officials and killing off others. He explained that Sa Province had needed a Governor that could protect himself against assassins, which is how he became the Temporary Governor.

Kouyuu then explained how Ensei was really just a figurehead that fought off the assassins while his 'administration' was really the power behind the Governor. They made all of the decisions and Ensei backed them.

Ensei rubbed the back of his head, "When you explain it like that, it is embarassing. Now, let me get to the main issue. The reason I came here was to put these into the Emperors keeping." He held out a small cloth bag with something in it that Yuri couldn't see from where she was standing.

Ryuuki looked at them and exclaimed, "Those are the Seal and Badge of the Governor of Sa Province..."

Ensei continued, "With the death of Enjun, the Sa Clan has become active once again..."

Ryuuki interrupted him, "If that's the case, why have you come here?! Right now you need to be there to supress the Sa Clan!"

"... If I were to truly able to proclaim myself as Governor of Sa Province, I would've done so."

Ryuuki was shocked, "What?"

"Enjun was my sponsor for the position, with him no longer among the living, and considering I never passed the Imperial Examination, all it would take is one person to declare that they don't accept me as a true Governor of Sa Province and I would no longer be accepted as such. That is why I came here. To see what kind of person the new Emperor is and what sort of people he has with him. After I found that out, I wanted to talk to him."

"But why were you being hunted by bandits?"

"There has been a price put on my head. With the help of Shi here, we tried to take out most of them during the night, but...!"

Ryuuki once again cut him off, "Now I understand. I will have a formal letter of authority written up immediately."

"I already told you, I haven't passed the exams, doing that would eventually cause a repeat of what is happening now. This is a perfect opportunity! When this year's exam results come back, please assign a legitimate Governor that no one will be able to object to!"

Ryuuki considered him, "And what will you do?"

"I'll return to Sa Province... there is a lot I can do without being Governor..." He looked down at his calloused hands.

Ryuuki was silent for a moment. Then, "Ensei, I have am order for you."

"Yes?"

"At least pass the initial Qualifying Examination, that way I can assign you the post of Lieutenant Governor."

"But there is already a capable Lieutenant Governor..." he smiled slightly,   
"Although I already planned on taking the Qualifying Exams. It has been a dream of mine to become an administrator of Sa province after all. I'm beginning to feel that it would be alright to start over again." His smile widened. Then the important atmosphere was broken.

*GROWL*

Everyone looked towards the source of the noise, Yuri, who blushed. "What? I'm hungry, we haven't eaten in forever!"

Ryuuki seemed to remember something... "That's right!" now everyone was looking at him, "You're a woman Shi?!"

Yuri scratched the back of her head, "Hehehe... well how about I tell you about it after we eat? Shouka-sama should be there as well after all."

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They all agreed and thus went back to the Kou Residence for a late dinner and story time. After they had eaten they all were sipping tea waiting for someone to address the elephant in the room.

Yuri cleared her throat. "Well I guess I should begin by saying that Shi is not my name... not my full name anyways. The name I was given at birth was Potter Shirayuri... I know Potter is a wierd name. I changed from Potter to Kazeno, so my full name is Kazeno Shirayuri. Everyon understand that? Good. Oh and you can continue calling me Shi or can call me Shirayuri or Yuri, though I prefer Yuri." She paused and thought for a moment.

"Okay before i can begin my story, I need to know... do you believe in magic?" All of them looked at her as though she had grown two more pairs of arms. "Well I am a magic user, know back in my old home as a Witch." They all now just looked confused. "Right then... Demonstration?"

Ah, now came the eager yet wary nods.

"Alright..." she thought for a second. "Oh I know!" She held up her hand and said clearly, "Avis" A small flock of glowing birds appeared from her hand and all of the men jumped from their seats and backed up. Shuurei held one of her hands up and a bird landed on it. "Really? All that fuss over a few harmless birds? Manly reaction, that was!" She left the birds alone while she laughed for a moment, allowing the men to touch the one Shuurei had.

Shouka spoke up, "Are they real?"

"Ah, but the question is, what does real entail? Do they have a heart beat? No. But you can touch them, so they are solid. But they are not permanent. Either they will eventually disappear on their own, or I can end the spell. Finite."

The birds all disappear at once.

"You see, they were real, but not alive. They were made out of my magic that flows through me like how blood flows through all of us. There are two major 'types' of magic. Dark and Light. They are assigned by how the creator of the spell intended for them to be used. Purposefully harmful is dark, other is light."

This time Shuuei asked, "What all can you do with magic?"

"Before I answer that, understand, magic is not the Answer to everything. For example, I cannot create food, and I cannot cure diseases. At most i can heal small cuts and bruises, not much more. There are many other things that I can and can't do." She looked down and sighed. "Do not be mistaken though, for every good thing that can be done with magic, an equally terrible thing can be done. For example, there is one curse that kills instantly. The only way to survive is by blocking it with a solid object." She looked up again, "Really there are so many things that I can do with magic, it would take to long to explain it all."

Shuurei quietly asked, "Have you ever killed someone with that... curse?"

Yuri looked each of them with a heavy heart and emotion filled eyes. "In self-defence, yes. I hope to never have to use it again, it is a horrible thing to feel. Curses like that are almost... addictive. Using them repeatedly can eventually cause the caster to become insane. Yet, even without using those 'dark' curses, it is still easy to kill someone." She pointed her finger to her tea cup and levitated it into the air. "This spell is a 'light spell' and yet, if one is strong enough they could lift a person with it." She moved over to where the table ended. "If one has that kind of power, they can lift a person to a high enough place and..." she let the cup shatter on the floor with a dead look in her eyes caught in memories of her past. The group looked at the shards transfixed. Yuri shook her head to clear her thought and use reparo on the cup before banishing the spilled tea and putting the cup back onto the table.

"So you see? It is not the spell itself, but the intent in using the spell that matters."

Ryuuki contemplated this before asking the question they were all waiting for. "Where are you from? It can't be anywhere near hear because someone would have heard of this before."

Yuri smiled, "Ah, I was waiting for that. Okay, this may be hard to believe, but I am from another world... No a better way to put that is a different dimension."

The confused looks were back.

"Shit. Alright, lets put it this way. I am from Earth, but it is a different Earth from this one. Think of my Earth as being a distorted reflection of this Earth... there are similarities, but they are not the same... okay?"

They still looked slightly confused, but decided they could come back to that.

Seiran decided he should ask a question, "So why did you leave there and come here?"

"Ah! Another good question! Well that would bring us to my story. Before I start, i am going to tell you that while this is the truth, there are some things that are unecessary to mention, somethings that I just don't want to talk about now, and things that you won't understand at first. Save your questions until the end though, and I will answer what I can with the right to refuse the question if it is too personal. Okay?"

When they all agreed, she started her story, "Well first off there are schools were people go to learn magic. One such school had a student named Tom Riddle..."

She went on to explain about Tom's past and who he became once leaving Hogwarts. She then jumped to where the prophecy was told to Dumbledore by Trelawny, "Oh and before you guys put it down as a question, a seer is someone who can see the future... they were few and far in between, and no I am not one, but I had a friend who was one." She told them about the prophecy and how her parents went into hiding because of it.

How they died because of it and she was sent to her 'loving relatives' because of it. "Don't bother asking about them either." she skipped over the years of abuse and jumped to when Hagrid finally brought her her letter when she was 11.

"Long story short, I fought against Riddle every year I was in school except for my 3rd and 6th years. I had to kill the teacher he possessed in 1st year... W-"

"WAIT!!" Ryuuki couldn't contain himself anymore, "So how old were you when you started the school?"

"11."

"So you only went to school for 5 years?"

"What do you mean?" Yuri smirked to herself knowing they all mistook her age for 16 at the most. "I am 19 about to turn 20 next month!"

All of them fell out of their chairs as Yuri cackled evilly. 

"That's what you get for assuming you know someone's age!"

Ensei was the first to recover, "But you're so tiny!!! Why?!?!"

Yuri lost the grin on her face and her sparkling eyes dimmed. "How about we don't worry about that right now and I finish the story?" They all understood that that was a 'Do Not Ask' question so they let it go. She went on to tell them the bare minimum of the years she spent fighting the snake bastard during school. Once she reached the point where she dropped out she explained the horcruxes to the best of her ability and went slightly more in depth about that part of the war. She glossed over the battles that were fought when the only horcurx left was Nagini. How they were in an all out war against Riddle and his Death Eaters. The fights that went on for hours, days without rest on the run, friend dying, family dying. All she said about all of that is that it was a long 2 years of drawn out battles.

Those in the room that had experienced the same knew what she was leaving out. They knew better than to ask about it.

She told them of how she had to sacrifice herself and of how she finally beat the ass hat.

Of how the ministry was attempting to force her to marry her school rival that she only tolerated at the time. The ultimatums. Her escape. Then she told them about everything that happened since she arrived in Saiunkoku. From that first 'meeting' with Ensei, till this moment.

At the end of her story, she was pleased that there was no pity in their eyes, only comprehension, slight confusion, and a little concern that she went through what she did.

They went throught their questions and surprisingly they were all along the lines of 'what does this mean?', or 'what did that do?', no 'why don't you tell us more about your residents', or 'what happened to you that one time you were captured'. She smiled thankfully at them as she answered their questions. Finally the last question came from Kouyuu.

"Why did you not just accept the marriage proposal? You two were at least civil to each other so why do through the process you did?"

Yuri just smiled at him, "Well a few reasons. First, I do not like being told what to do. Especially not by those bunch of idiots that were in control. Second, in our time, there were very few arranged marriages, most married out of love and desire, not because someone told them to. I want to marry for love. The man I marry could own nothing more than his name, as long as I love him I wouldn't care. It may sound naive, but that is my decision. Third agreeing to that would have lead to more requests. Or should I demands, threats. No, I was not going to live that life. So I chose to come here instead!"

They all considered her answer and nodded satisfied that her reasoning, while odd to them, was sound to herself.

"Alright! If there is nothing else that anyone wants to ask...?" They all shook their heads. "Then considering how late it is, we should all be retiring soon. I think I'll go after one last cup of tea."

Shuurei went around and refilled everyone's tea and stopped by Ryuuki's chair.

"Honestly I am surprised that you were there tonight Ryuuki."

"Well I sent a letter saying that I would be coming by tonight before you left the note saying you wouldn't be here. Of course I would come after you!"

She huffed, "I heard nothing about a letter."

Ryuuki pouted, "Shuurei, are you not happy to see me?"

Shuurei jolted and then thought about it out loud. "Because of all the strange letters and gifts you sent me, it doesn't feel like it has been a long time since we have seen each other..."

Yuri watched the exchange with humor. 'So that's where all of those odd things came from...'

Shuurei continued, "...But, I am happy to see you in person!"

Now Ryuuki was excited, "Have you read my letters?"

"I've been reading them." She put her hands on her hips. "But using such expensive paper to write one line... You wrote about the weather and fish one time!"

"Shuuei encouraged me to write faithfully so that you would remember me! He said, 'the more, the better'!"

Shuuei muttered under his breath, "It's the content that matters..." He looked slightly dejected that Ryuuki was so helpless.

Ryuuki must not have heard him, "And the gifts? How was the ice?"

Yuri laughed as each of the gifts that could be shared were given away. 'He's hopeless and she's clueless... they are so meant for each other!'

"And the voodoo doll?"

Yuri choked on the tea and asked Seiran who was sitting next to her, "Isn't that a little... well... creepy?"

He sweat dropped and nodded at her, "Yes... and Ojou-sama has it displayed in her room."

Yuri covered her mouth attempting to quell the laughter threatening to burst. When Ensei leaned in from the other side and said, "I thought the voodoo doll was a prank." And Seiran responded that Ryuuki thought it was a proper gift, Yuri was sure that she was causing major internal damage from not laughing.

She barely restrained herself in time to witness Ryuuki steal a kiss from Shuurei... Apparently it wasn't the first time. The reactions arround the table finally made Yuri lose control and she began to laugh so hard that tears were streaming down her face. Shuuei looked amused, Kouyuu horrified, Ensei and Seiran both looked shocked, and Shouka was just bemused. When Shuurei snapped on Ryuuki, Yuri knew she had to get outside if she wanted to breathe anytime soon.

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She sat out on the edge of one of the decks and had finally calmed down when Seiran, Ensei, and Shuuei came outside. The all sat down near her and just looked at the stars.

Yuri broke the silence, "Are they always that amusing when put together?"

Seiran chuckled, "Oh yes. Ojou-sama almost always snaps when he does something like that."

Ensei and Shuuei laughingly agreed. After a moment they all quieted down.

Ensei spoke up after a few moments, "Do you miss it?"

Yuri thought about it. "Honestly not as much as I thought I would. Pretty much all I knew there was violence and politics, so besides the people, there is not much to miss. With it being such a small group, I know that they all have each other to help them, so that helps as well. And all of you help by just being here." She looked at each of them in turn and gave them blinding smiles. "Thank you."

Ensei put his hand on her head. "We may have been joking about it earlier, but you are becoming a sister to me. If you ever need to talk, I am avaliable!" He then said good night to them and went off.

Shuuei just smirked at her. "Well, I don't see you as a sister... so how about we-"

Yuri smacked him on the forehead and then pointed at him. "You, sir, are an obvious womanizer... don't even think of adding me to your collection!"

He put his hand over his heart and sighed dramatically, "Oh you wound me... how could you imply that I would have that sort of collection?" She drolly stared at him. He laughed before patting her on the head and wishing them good night.

Yuri and Seiran sat in a companiable silence for a while. Seiran looked over to say something when he saw that she had fallen asleep with tears making wet trails down her face.

'I have never heard someone cry silently...'

He pushed the thought out of his head and picked her up to take her to her room. He did his best to once again ignore how light the girl was. He laid her down on her bed and covered her up before leaving with a whispered "Good night".

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They all slept for a couple of hours before getting up to send off Ryuuki, Kouyuu, and Shuuei. Shuurei said her piece to Ryuuki before the trio began the trip to the palace.

Not even five feet away, Kouyuu turns back and asks if Shuurei would want to take the Imperial Exam. He tells her about the bill that he and Ryuuki were trying to get passed that would allow women to take the Exams as well. He informs her of how hard it would be before asking her once again if she would want to take it.

None of us were surprised when she answered in the positive.

"I'll do it! I want to become and Official!"

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They went and visited Shoukun's grave that afternoon. Yuri wasn't going to go, feeling like it wouldn't be right, but Shuurei told her that her mother would be happy to meet her and the awkwardness left her.

Shuurei told her mother about everything that had happened since the last time she had been there and then told her that she would become an Official.

Soon after Ensei said his goodbyes. "Well Hime-san, it's time for me to go."

Shuurei just smiled. "If you ever want to collapse on the side of the road again, you know where to come!" He pat her on the head and chuckled.

Seiran sighed, "Anywhere but the Kou Residence, please."

Ensei looked at him unimpressed. "And we are supposed to be friends... how cold."

Yuri laughed, "Oh don't bother with the grouch over there... even if he won't admit it, we all know he considers you his best friend!" She felt Seiran glare drill into the side of her head and she turned to stick her tongue out at him before turning back to Ensei. "Write when you get back to Sa okay? I want to know that you got there relatively unharmed."

"Yes, yes... bothersome woman."

Yuri lightly slapped him on the back of his head. The fact that she had to jump slightly to reach it was ignored. She the giggled and kissed him on his cheek. "Come back to visit soon."

He nodded with a smile. He looked one last time to Shuurei. "Do your best on the Exams!"

"Of course!"

"Well then, take care, Hime-san, Seiran, Yuri-chan, Shouka-sama!" He waved at them and then walked away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good lord I hope you all enjoy this! I know it is not the most exciting chapter, but all of the really good stuff happens after exam time is over! not to say there aren't good things between now and then, just not as many things that I can change! All of this stuff has to happen first so hang in there with me!!
> 
> words without ANs: approx 7000 give or take a few hundred.
> 
> SO REVIEW!!! let me know what you think! and once again the official pairing will be SEIRAN/SHIRAYURI!!! if i do any fics with another pairing i will put it in an AN somewhere!
> 
> Thanks for Reading!
> 
> ~GG


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I hope you enjoy this chapter!
> 
> *Severus Snape appears, pointing his wand at GG* "Say it, you dunderhead."
> 
> GG: "NEVER!!!"
> 
> Snape starts stalking towards GG with a sadistic smirk on his face. "Fine. Then I will have to-"
> 
> GG begins to talk with tears streaming down her face, anime-style. "Noooo!! FINE!! *sniffle* GG owns nothing recognizable... *mutters* though with a few obliviates I-"
> 
> *CoughCOUGH*
> 
> GG: "EEP! Just kidding, I own nothing and will not use magic to change this fact!"
> 
> GG runs, crying hysterically, into her room.
> 
> Snape: "What are you looking at you foolish children? Read!"

Yuri was bored. It had been a couple of weeks since Ensei had left, and the heatwave was over, which meant all of the workers who had fallen ill were back to work as per the normal. This meant that Shuurei no longer was working at the palace, which meant Yuri had nothing to do. If Ensei was still there, she would make him take her out to find 'something' to do, but 'nooo' he had to be responsible and go back to Sa Province.

Yuri mumbled under her breath, "What a wet blanket. So boring." She sighs in exasperation.

Seiran was busy working at the Grainary again and they didn't need any extra help right now, as the end of the summer season was drawing near, so all that was left was to finish storing was was already gathered. So... that wasn't an option. Shuurei was studying in case the law for women to be able to take the exams passed, but Yuri couldn't drudge up the same excitement. She learned the bare bones of how the Society worked, anything more was just extra in her opinion. She had no intention of getting into politics, not back in the Wizarding World, and not here. Once the school started back up she figured that she would go with Shuurei to help with the kids. Until then, there was absolutely nothing Yuri could do to relieve her boredom.

Yuri was currently sitting outside facing the currently empty pond. She leaned her head back and decided to cloud watch for the time being.

"So. Bored."

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Winter was upon them when Yuri received a note from Ensei.

'Yuri-chan,

I made it back to Sa Province, so as promised I am writing this. Things are still a mess here so this note will probably have to hold you until I can see you again! Tell Hime-san, Shouka-sama, and Seiran hello for me! Don't worry about writing back, I am not even sure that this note will make it all the way to you. See you soon hopefully!

Ja ne~

Ensei'

Yuri folded the note up and set it in a drawer in her room. 'Ah well, one less thing to worry about.' She then went to eat breakfast with the others before Shuurei and her took off for the temple to teach the kids.

Ever since she had revealed herself as a woman to her friends, she had stopped trying to hide it period. She still wore pants instead of the traditional women's clothing, but she had stopped binding her breasts so tightly and let her hair hang loose or in a ponytail. She received many weird looks at first, expecially with her weapons, but the people around town eventually lost interest in her.

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The next couple of months followed the same pattern; Yuri would get up and eat breakfast, then Shuurei and Yuri would go to the temple while Seiran picked up odd jobs, the two women would meet up with Seiran for lunch if they could, then they would seperate again. Usually Seiran was waiting outside of the temple by the time Shuurei was done teaching and the three of them would walk home together. Yuri would take the evenings to study while Yuri would practice with her weapons and occasionally her magic. The only deviation to this was when The Law was passed and Yuri took the Aptitude Test to see if she would be able to take the Imperial Exam.

'Home... it really has become my home hasn't it?' mused Yuri as she waited for Shuurei to be done teaching for the day. Yuri didn't mind sitting in the class room all day because the children were all just adorable and would come ask her for help if Shuurei was busy. If she couldn't help them, she would tell them stories until Shuurei was available again. So she knew most of the kids fairly well and had some of their personalities pegged; like Ryuushin.

Ryuushin was most definitely an adorable kid, but he also had a mischievious side to him that reminded Yuri of herself, although sometimes she wished he had less of a mischievious soul. Today was one of those times. Right before the class was dismissed, Ryuushin decided to cause a little havoc which led to Shuurei and Yuri chasing him around the town.

It was now the middle of winter which meant it was snowing and cold; needless to say, Yuri was not impressed at the moment.

Shuurei tried calling for him to stop once again, "Hey Ryuushin, wait!"

Ryuushin didn't even falter in his running, he just casually threw over his shoulder, "Catch me if you can!"

Yuri was just slightly upset with the kid, but Shuurei was spitting mad.

"OH! You've gone too far this time! I will not forgive you!"

Yuri, of course, had no real idea what was going on. She had been talking with two little twin girls when she had heard Shuurei call out to Ryuushin the first time, and after making sure the girls would be alright on their own, she took off after Shuurei. She hadn't had an opportunity to ask what Ryuushin did so far, but that didn't stop her from helping Shuurei.

Shuurei's next yell answered her question, "It's one thing forgetting your homework, but doodling on the temple walls?!" Yuri snorted under her breath and thought, 'Gotta admit the kid is brave.' 

She was taken out of her thoughts by Shuurei's voice once again, "Hey! What are you doing?"

Yuri looked around and noticed that they were on a bridge that was over one of the last few unfrozen rivers left in town. She then saw Ryuushin must have jumped off of the bridge onto a branches that hung over the water. Yuri just sighed, "Really Ryuushin?"

He grinned at her before looking back at Shuurei, "Can you make it over here, Shuurei-sensei?"

Shuurei barely hesitated before she gained a determined look, "We will see."

Yuri just 'knew' this would end horribly, "N-now Shuurei, calm down! We can talk this over!"

Shuurei just pushed her sleeves up and started to climb onto the rail. "No, I can do this!"

Even Ryuushin must have been getting a bad feeling. "No, hey! Stop! This is too hard for you Shuurei-sensei! Yuri-nee-chan, stop her!"

"I can't Ryuushin! She's determined to do it one way or another."

Shuurei got one leg up, "Oh hush you two! Ryuushin, stay right there!"

Yuri and Ryuushin spoke at the same time, "It's too hard for you!"

*SPLASH*

Yuri took off her sword and put a leg over the bridge wall, "Ryuushin, I'm going to get her out of there, you get down from that branch and stay there." Without waiting for an answer, Yuri jumped into the water. It wasn't particularly deep, but it was bitingly cold. The current was a little too strong for Shuurei to comfortably move in so Yuri stood in front of her blocking most of the force. "Come on Shuurei, let's get out of here." They walked slowly to the bank so as not to lose their footing. As soon as they got out Shuurei started sneezing and coughing.

Yuri looked at her for a moment before coming to a decision, "Ryuushin, do me a favor and go find Seiran. Ask him where I can find medicine at the manor, and if we don't have any can he please pick some up? Here is some gold, if you do this you can keep one of the gold coins, alright? We'll be at the Kou Residence."

Ryuushin looked at her, stunned. Then Shuurei coughed and he snapped out of it. He nodded and took the money before running off.

Yuri looked around to see if anyone was nearby. When she didn't see anyone she used a quick charm to dry them. It helped with Yuri's shivering, but Shuurei's didn't even slow down. 'Damn, that's a bad sign.'

"Let's get you home Shuurei."

They set off at a slow pace. When they were about halfway there, Shuurei collapsed but caught herself on her hands and knees, "I'm alright. I just tripped."

"Over air? Right." Yuri knelt down in front of her, "C'mon up you go." She grabbed both of Shuurei's arms and put them around her neck before grabbing Shuurei's thighs. Once she felt like she had a decent hold she leaned forward slightly compensate for the added weight and then stood up. She knew Shuurei was still conscious when the girl tightened her arms. "Alright, we're halfway there. You'll be fine Shuurei, hold on tight." Yuri went as fast as she could knowing that Shuurei was already getting sick.

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Seiran met them at the gate and opened the door for them. They went to Shuurei's room and Seiran pulled her sheets back. Yuri gently put her on the bed and covered her back up. She felt Shuurei's head and sighed exasperatedly. "Oh yeah, you are definitely sick. I have to say it; I told you so! Ryuushin is light on his feet and used to doing stunts like that!" Shuurei attempted to glare at her but she looked so pitiful that Yuri didn't mind. "You are going to stay in bed until we tell you otherwise, got it?"

Shuurei pulled the blankets up to her nose but Yuri could here the mumbled, "Yes ma'am."

Yuri just pat her on the head, "Good." She stood up, "If you need us, call for us, alright? And by need us, I mean for 'anything'! No matter how trivial." At Shuurei's nod of acceptance Yuri sighed. "We're going to go fix you a warm drink, we'll be back in a few minutes. Try to rest."

She could tell Seiran was worried sick so she grabbed his arm and dragged him with her, "Seiran, she'll be alright. Hovering around her like a mother hen will prevent her from getting the rest she needs." He sighed and began to willingly walk with her.

"It's been years since Ojou-san last was sick. What if she becomes like she used to be, sick all of the time?"

"Seiran, she jumped into a freezing river in the middle of winter... That would make even you sick. Plus she was in there for a minute until I could get her out."

"You went in the water as well? Are you alright?"

Yuri waved him off, "I'm fine. I might get a little cold later on but Shuurei is who we need to worry about right now. Her fever is a little high for my liking."

"Yeah."

They prepared some tea in relative silence, but it was a comfortable silence. They went back to Shuurei's room and she was still awake. Yuri supported her back while Seiran helped her hold the cup steady. After she drank it all they got up to let her rest when she reached out and grabbed Seiran's sleeve.

Shuurei released it almost immediately, "Sorry, I'm being childish."

Yuri and Seiran looked at each other before coming to the same decision. Yuri moved Shuurei's pillow and slid back until her back was against the wall and Shuurei's head was in her lap; Seiran grabbed a chair and pulled it up next to the bed. Yuri started to run one hand through Shuurei's hair while she laid the other on her forehead checking her temperature.

Seiran pulled her blanket up to her chin, "We'll stay with you, so please get some sleep."

Shuurei hummed, "Yuri-chan, you're hand is cool but it feels good."

Yuri just smiled at her gently as she watched the younger girl close her eyes and drift off to sleep. She looked at Seiran and saw the same soft expression she knew was on her face.

He looked at her and smiled, "You would make an excellent mother." Yuri felt her face heat up and knew she was blushing. Serian chuckled before softly saying, "I'm going to go chip some ice, call for me if you need me."

"Alright. Don't worry, I'll take care of her."

"I know." and then he left. Yuri knew that him leaving her to take care of Shuurei was a big deal. Very big. Shuurei was the baby sister and he did not want anything to happen to her; Yuri knew that leaving her here was showing how much he trusted her now. She flipped her hand to the cooler side on Shuurei's forehead while continuously running her hand through her hair. She had her head leaned against the wall when she felt Shuurei shift. Yuri looked down to find the other girl's gaze on her.

"I think you have a crush on Seiran."

"I might. Does that bother you?" Shuurei smiled up at her kindly.

"No. It would actually make me really happy if you two got together. Seiran has always been too busy taking care of me to find someone. I don't want him to be lonely when I eventually leave."

"Even if I or someone else got together with him, He would still miss you terribly... so would I." She poked Shuurei's cheek, "Now go to sleep or you'll never get better."

Shuurei closed her eyes, "Okay... Yuri-nee-chan."

Yuri's hand froze for a moment before picking their rhythm back up. She leaned her head back against the wall with a happy smile.

She faintly heard a door slam open close to where the kitchen was and heard Shouka's voice. 'Dear oh dear... such a protective family we make. Good luck ever getting married with them around Imouto.' Yuri drifted off to sleep with her one hand still resting on Shuurei's forehead.

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Seiran was shocked out of his thoughts by the kitchen door sliding open with a bang. Before he could say anything Shouka went into his worried dad mode.

"What's this I hear about Shuurei and Yuri being sick?"

"Shouka-sama...! Weren't you going to spend the night at the archives?" He looked at the load in Shouka's arms, "And what's that?"

Shouka looked down at his arms with bemusement, "Why am I carrying all of this?!" Then he thought about it, "But... we have to keep her warm with covers! A-and we need nourishing food, a-and... right! An ice pack! What? Why do we keep her warm yet cool her down?!" He brought his load over to the table.

"P-please calm down Shouka-sama! Yuri-san and I got her into bed and had her drink a warm tea with some herbs to help her sleep in it. Yuri-san is still in there with her."

Shouka put everything on the table, "Y-You're right. Calm down." They both looked at the pile on the table for a moment. "It's been so long since someone was sick here; it surprised me."

Shouka stared at the pile while Seiran started chipping at the ice again, bost lost in their own thoughts.

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Yuri and Shuurei were both woken up by a commotion from the other side of the room.

They heard Shouka's voice first, "Oh, Seiran, I'll take care of that."

A pause then, "O-oh! Shouka-sama are you alright?!" They opened their eyes to the sight of the men messing with something on the table. "I'll take care of this." Shuurei went to sit up but Yuri pushed her back down. Shuurei tilted her head so she could still see what was going on even laying down.

She looked up at Yuri, who had an amused but exasperated look on her face, then she looked back the Seiran and her Father, "What's going on?"

They looked over to where they where laying. Yuri gave a small laugh, "You do realize that sick people need their sleep, right?"

Seiran had the sense to look sheepish while Shouka went on as if he hadn't heard Yuri, "Oh Shuurei, Yuri. Are you two feeling better now?"

Shuurei answered hesitantly, "Y-yeah..."

Yuri just shrugged, "I wasn't as bad off as Shuurei, so yeah I'm fine."

Seiran and Shouka both looked relieved. Shouka let out a breath, "Good. Wait just a moment. I'll make you some special ginger tea."

Yuri didn't notice Shuurei or Seiran's reactions, "Mmm. That sounds wonderful!"

She did notice when they both looked at her with horror. Shuurei spoke out before Shouka went too far, "Tou-san! We're okay! You don't need to do that for us!"

He paused at the doorway, "It's fine. You two rest. Once you drink some of the tea your colds will be blown away!" Then he walked out.

Yuri looked between them, "What's wrong with the tea?"

Seiran sighed, "It's not the tea so much as the process of making it... He just almost blows up the kitchen everytime he makes it."

Shuurei was nodding emphatically, "Seiran, go stop Tou-sama. If this house falls apart anymore, we won't have anywhere to live."

He walked up to the bed, "I understand. Why don't the two of you rest a little longer?"

Yuri nodded her agreement as the sound of crashing dishes and explosions reached them. "Y-you weren't joking about him blowing things up? From making 'tea'?!"

Seiran ran out of the room to attempt dome damage control and Shuurei let out a sigh. Yuri looked down at her, "Are you alright Shuurei?"

"Hm? Oh, I'm fine. This just made me think of the past..."

"Ah." She left Shuurei to her thoughts and leaned her head back once more. She was sitting there, thinking about random things, when she felt a huge amount of killing intent coming from outside of the window.

She slowly looked up only to see Kou Reishin glaring at her. Yuri felt her eyeybrow raise in question. "What...?" He notcied that she was awake and the killing intent doubled. When the mask face of Ko Kijin appeared above Reishin's, she knew she would have face palmed if Shuurei wasn't asleep. 'What are they doing...'?

Shouka walked in to the room and looked surprised to see her awake, "Can't sleep? Are you feeling alright?!"

She let out a soft laugh, "Oh, I'm feeling okay... I'm awake because of them." She pointed towards the window.

They looked at the men outside to see them arguing and not paying attention to what was happening inside. Shouka went over to the window and opened it, "Reishin, what are you doing outside? And Chamberlain Ko, too?"

Shouka was blocking her view but she heard Reishin anyways, "O-oh! A-aniue! Um, this... well...!"

Shouka ignored his stuttering; 'Probabaly used to it', Yuri thought. Shouka said, "You're hopeless... but thanks for coming to check on things. Come on in."

"You sure?!"

"Well I'm not about to leave two Chamberlains out here to freeze to death. Besides, I can't exactly ignore my dear younger brother as he sits out here, can I!" When Shouka tok a step back, Yuri saw Reishin climbing through the window and had to choke back a laugh. "But, Reishin..."

"Yes?"

"Coming throught the window is a bit...!" Shouka seemed to be at a loss for words. Yuri let a little light laughter out when Reishin jumped back from the window, embarrassed.

"I-I'm sorry." Reishin pulled out his customary fan to hid his blush, "I got a little too excited and got carried away."

Yuri got up and replaced her lap with Shuurei's pillow, trying her best ot not wake her up. She turned around just in time to see Kijin jump over the window sill like it was nothing. Shouka and Reishin's shocked faces were too much for her. She slammed her hand over her mouth and doubled over with muffled laughter. She barely heard Kijin say he brought medicine, she was so busy concentrating on not waking Shuurei.

She looked back up as Shouka was thanking him. Her eye twitched in agitation, 'They are going to wake Shuurei up if they don't quiet down.' She walked over the the window as Reishin was loudly telling Kijin off for entering before him. Reishin was finally inside and was talking about the stuff he had brought. 'At least he lowered his voice.'

She stepped up behind Shouka and lightly coughed, "Shouka-san, might I suggest that everyone lower their voices? We don't want to wake Shuurei up."

He looked at her a nodded. Then his face grew worried, "Shouldn't you be resting as well?"

Yuri shook her head, "No, I'll be fine. I'll just grab something to wrap up in to keep warm, then I think I'll sit up for a while."

"Alright." He looked back to the two men, "Oh, and Reishin? Why did you bring medicine for virility and constipation?"

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Yuri was wrapped up in a light blanket, seated at the table while Shouka, Reishin, and Kijin were standing by Shuurei's bed talking quietly. She was sitting next to an open window enjoying the view that it allowed her, not really thinking or focusing on anything.

She was abruptly brought out of her silent vigilance when Seiran opened the door to the rooms, "Shouka-sama, We're done with the meal preparations." He looked around, "Yuri-san, what are you doing up? Shouldn't you be resting still?" He looked so concerned for her that she couldn't help the giggle she let out.

"I'm fine, Seiran. Thank you." She smiled at him before turning to Shouka, missing the light dusting of color that appeared on his face.

Shouka looked at him amused before remembering why Seiran had originally shown up, "Oh, thank you for cooking." Yuri saw the other two walk behind Seiran before the others. "Well then...!"

When Kouyuu saw who else was in the room, his face lost all color, "Reishin-san! W-what are you doing here?"

Reishin covered his face with that damnable fan once again, "What's wrong with an Uncle visiting his sick niece?" He pierced Kouyuu with a hard stare, "In fact, it seems you have been jumping the gun on things without my knowledge, ne Kouyuu? I'll deal with you later." Yuri quietly sighed, 'He's just jealous that Kouyuu is here at all.'

Kijin laughed, "I wouldn't be surprised if he throws you out of the house, Kouyuu."

Yuri let out an audible sigh of amusement. She looked at Reishin, "Stop being so jealous, you cranky old Uncle. If Kouyuu told you where he was all the time, it would drive you insane." She then turned to Kijin, "And you! Stop instigating!" They all just stared at her and she lifted an eye brow. "What? If you all don't shut up and end up waking Shuurei up, I'll kick you all out myself! Now, let's move this party elsewhere." They all looked frozen to the spot, she imperiously waved her hand, "Move it!" The look on her face cleared the room pretty quickly.

Before they could find another room to sit in, there was a knock at the main entrance.

Shouka looked up, "Oh? Who's that?" He walked over and opened the door.

Yuri saw who it was, "Ryuushin's Father? What are you doing here?"

The father nodded to her in greeting before looking back to Shouka and bowing low, "I'm terribly sorry that our foolish son has caused so much trouble."

Shouka smiled at him, "It's alright. Please don't worry about it!" When the man didn't move, Shouka asked, "Is there something else?"

What he said next froze Yuri to the spot, "Well... did Ryuushin happen to come by here?"

Shouka lost his smile, "What? When did you last see him?"

"Shortly after noon."

Yuri's worry drastically increased, "That was hours ago!"

Ryuushin's father looked down, "He said he was going to the mountain, but he hasn't been back yet." He stood up, "I'll keep looking."

Shouka stopped him, "Wait. He said he was going to the mountain right?" Ryuushin's father nodded.

Seiran thought aloud, "If we are talking about a mountain near here... He must be talking about Mt. Ryuu where Shoukun-sama's grave is."

Shuuei looked at him, "If it's Mt. Ryuu, we can get there by horse! We'll go back to the palace and get some horses." Yuri's worry and tension were skyrocketing with each passing moment.

As they continued planning, Yuri ran inside to grab a cloak and her weapons. She ran back out in time to hear Kijin say, "My residence is closer to Mt. Ryuu. If you find the child you should take him there."

Seiran responded, "In that case, we are off to the Kou Residence." He noticed Yuri ready to go, "Yuri-san, you should stay here, you might really get sick this time."

Yuri stared at him, "I'm sorry, all I heard you say is, 'Oh, good. Everyone is ready so let's go!' Atleast that better be what I hear next or I'll leave without you three." Seiran just looked at her for a moment before sighing.

Shuuei took the time to put in his two cents, "You two can have your lover's quarrel another time," Yuri and Seiran both turned red at this, "we need to go!"

Yuri began walking, "Shut up Shuuei." Her heart that was heavy with anxiety felt just a little lighter with the laughter she heard from behind.

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The four of them were finally on mountain seaching for Ryuushin. Yuri was extremely worried about how long he had been outside in the cold. Kouyuu was in the front and pulled his horse to a stop, the other three stopping as well.

He looked around, "This isn't looking good."

Seiran spoke up, "Ryuushin may be reckless, but he always has a reason for what he does."

Yuri glanced at him briefly, "That's true, but what could he be doing out here?"

Seiran looked down, "The only thing I can think of is...!"

Kouyuu and Shuuei's expression suddenly changed from confusion to understanding. "Medicinal herbs!" Kouyuu exclaimed.

Shuuei looked at them, "Then we should focus on places where they grow!"

Yuri put her horse in motion, "What are we waiting for, let's go!"

They rode around for a while longer with the three men leading since Yuri had no idea where to look. They had been yelling for Ryuushin for the past few minutes, but he didn't answer. They were slightly spread out, trying to find any sign of the young boy.

Yuri was ready to pull her hair out in frustration when she heard Kouyuu yell for them. She turned her horse around and hurried to where he was. They all saw the footprints and followed them to a nearby cave. They all dismounted and went in, Yuri in the lead.

She saw Ryuushin on the ground with herbs in his hand and her heart must have stopped. It only started up again when she saw his breathe puff in front of his face from the cold temperature. She ran to him and dropped to her knees. 'He's freezing!' She took her cloak off and wrapped him up in it before taking off his shoes and rubbing his bone white feet to warm them up. Seiran grabbed one of his hands and started doing the same.

Once the four appendages regained some color, they wrapped him up tightly in the cloak before Yuri looked at Seiran, "Are you going to ride with him?" He nodded.

Seiran picked the small boy up and the four of them left the cave. He handed Ryuushin to Shuuei and prepared to mount his horse when he saw that Yuri was shivering. He let go of the saddle, "Yuri-san." She stopped right before putting her foot in the stirrup.

"Yes?" Seiran walked over to her while taking off his cloak. He put it around her shoulders. "What? Oh, no. Seiran I'm fine, please, take your cloak back!" She went to take it off when his hands caught hers.

"No. I'll be fine, but you are more likely to fall sick with what happened earlier. Please, wear it?"

Yuri looked at him for a moment before sighing and nodding. "If you two would please hold off on the affections, I would like to get warm again." They looked over to a grinning Shuuei.

At the same time they told him to shut up. Yuri blushed and mounted her horse before pulling Seiran's cloak tighter around herself. 'He smells so nice...like the air after a rainstorm.' She shook her head and waited for the rest of them to get settled on their horses before leading the way, hoping no one would question her bright red face.

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They left Ryuushin with Kijin's doctors, with the promise that someone would see him home when he was able. Yuri decided to leave the poor boy alone for now, but when she saw him again she was going to chew him out good.

They arrived back at the Kou residence to a lot of yelling and entered Shuurei's room to see Shouka holding a pissed off Reishin away from a confused Emperor with a coughing Shuurei in her bed. The quartet's sudden appearance temporarily halted Reishin, giving Shouka the opportunity to get him out of the room and away from the Emperor.

Yuri sat down next to Shuurei on her bed. She put her hand to Shuurei's forehead, "How are you feeling? Do you need anything?"

Shuurei smiled at her, "No, I feel fine. Ryuuki gave me some of Tou-san's ginger tea."

They all looked at Ryuuki who was decidedly sheepish.

Seiran sighed, "You had her drink some of Shouka-sama's ginger tea with no ginger?"

Shuurei butt in, "Never mind that, how is Ryuushin?"

Yuri put hand down as Shuuei answered, "He's fine, we left him at Chamberlain Ko's residence where the doctors there are taking care of him."

Yuri continued, "His hands and feet were slightly frostbitten, but nothing too serious. He'll be up and running again in no time."

Shuurei relaxed and sighed, "That boy... he can be so reckless."

Shuuei changed the subject, "I see your fever has gone down, Shuurei-dono. That's a bit of a shame... You were very lovely and attractive with your cheeks so flushed."

Yuri twitched and grabbed the closest thing, which was a cup, and threw it at him. "Alright you pervert, stop hitting on the recently ill people."

He dodged the cup only to hear Kouyuu say, "Go stick your head in a snow bank and stay there until spring, you Casanova!"

Yuri was laughing until she felt Shuurei get up. Seiran reached a hand out, "Ojou-san! What are you doing?"

Shuurei replied without an ounce of hesitation, "I'm going to check how Ryuushin is doing."

Seiran started, "But..."

Shuurei interrupted him, "I'm worried about him..." They all looked towards the door when it opened to see Ryuushin with Kijin standing behind him. "Ryuushin!" The boy looked extremely sad and guilty. Well there went Yuri's plans of chewing him out.

Kijin shifted, "He insisted on coming to see you before I took him to his home."

"Shuurei-sensei... I'm sorry." He held out the herbs they had found him with towards Shuurei. She took them while saying his name softly. He started crying, "Sensei; you said that you'd be taking a break from teaching at the temple, right? I heard from the head monk that you might not be coming back at all! I'd been doing my homework, but if I handed it in, that would be the end! I didn't mean to cause trouble but I...!"

Shuurei knelt down in front of him and put her hand on his head, "I'm sorry to have put you through all of that."

Ryuushin gained control of his shuddering breaths, "Sensei! Don't get married!"

That threw all of them for a loop. Yuri slapped a hand over her mouth and turned her head to the side. 'Do not laugh! DO. NOT. LAUGH.'

She heard Shuurei's exclamation of, "M-married?!"

Ryuushin just went on, "In another five years, I'll become a good man just like Seiran!" Yuri looked at said man to see his amused expression.

Ryuuki apparently couldn't hold himself still any longer, "Wait a minute, boy! Give me another five years and I, too...!" He cut off whatever he was going to say to catch an object that came flying at his head. Everyone looked at it and knew what it was except for Ryuuki, Shuurei, and Ryuushin. "A fan?"

Everyone else thought, 'That's Reishin's fan...'

The door opened and Shouka walked in, "Oh my! Your Majesty, I apologise! It slipped from my hand."

Yuri and the others that knew the truth looked at Reishin, only to see him hunched over and shaking with barely contained rage. Yuri thought, 'Riiight.'

Shouka went and knelt by Ryuushin, "Ryuushin, your father is very worried about you, so you should go home and let him know you're okay. Thank you for gathering herbs for Shuurei."

Ryuushin grinned happily, "Okay!"

Kijin looked at Shuurei, "Take care and get better. When you are recovered I will send Camelias."

Shuurei bowed her head, "Thank you very much!"

Kijin took Reishin and Ryuushin and left.

Shuuei and Kouyuu said their goodbyes and started to leave when Seiran stopped them, "You two... the kitchen still needs to be cleaned." He smiled evilly.

Shuurei sat on her bed, "We can't ask them to do that!"

Yuri muttered under her breath, "Why not? I definitely think we should at least make the pervert do it."

Seiran was standing next to her so he was the only one to hear what she said. He chuckled.

Shuuei ignored them and directed his attention to Shuurei, "It's alright, Shuurei-dono."

Kouyuu simply said, "Don't worry about it, get some more rest."

Ryuuki raised his hand excitedly, "I-I'll help too! I'll be very helpful!"

Seiran seeing a golden opportunity closed his eyes and smiled pleasantly, "Thank you, Your Majesty! I am positive scrubbing pots will be helpful to you later on in life!"

All Yuri could think was, 'bullshit'. She saw that Shuurei still looked tired so she shoo'd with everyone out with her hands, "Alright, people. We all have things to do, so let's leave Shuurei alone now!" She waved goodnight to Shuurei as she closed the bedroom door behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, there you go! Almost 5700 words!
> 
> Poor Ryuushin, poor Shuurei! So now is when we start to see that unlike in canon, Seiran thinks of Shuurei in a brotherly fashion, no romance (one-sided or other) between them! I hope you liked it! Let me know what you thought!
> 
> ~GG


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well everyone, I hope you enjoy chapter 7 of Shirayuri Potter!
> 
> Sadly enough, I own none of these wonderful things that you may or may not recognize...

It had already been several weeks since the incident with Ryuushin had happened when Officials came to deliver something to Shuurei. Yuri and Shuurei had been walking around the yard when they had heard them knock on the entrance. She decided to lean against the door while Shuurei walked up to the men.

The oldest one, who was holding an ornate box, spoke, "Kou Shuurei. We have come to bring you the results of your Aptitude Test. Do you accept?"

Shuurei bowed, "I respectfully accept." She grabbed the box with steady hands and bowed to them once more. She stayed like that until they walked off.

Yuri stepped towards her, "So that will determine if you can take the Imperial Exam..."

Shuurei nervously eyed the box, "Y-yeah..."

"...Well what are you waiting for? Open it!" Yuri crossed her fingers. 'Please let her have passed!'

Still eyeing the box like it would suddenly grow teeth and bite her, Shuurei opened the lid and stared at the contents with a blank face.

Yuri uncrossed her fingers, 'Oh no...'

Shuurei suddenly beamed with all of her might and looked up at her, "I passed!"

Yuri let out a laugh and hugged the younger girl, "Congratulations!! Let's tell the others!"

They turned around to go back inside when they saw Shouka and Seiran standing there, smiling.

Yuri looked at Shuurei, "Now we just have to get you to pass the Imperial Exam, and then we'll see what comes!"

"Yeah!"

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The classes at the temple were over for the rest of the season so Shuurei had been working as an accountant at a place in the Red Light District called Kougaro. Yuri went with her as she was worried about Shuurei being in a brothel, not to mention walking around the Red Light District alone. Yuri found out that Shuurei had been working there on and off for a while and had become close to the owner, Kochou.

Yuri was wary of the woman at first, but quickly came to like her. She was sitting in a chair near where Shuurei was working... and ignoring her childhood friend, whom she called Santa. Yuri could never remember his actual name. But Santa was obviously in love with the girl. 'Not that she has noticed...'

She quietly chuckled when the poor boy declared that he would be one of the few men that would accept her in marriage without a dowry. He was so nervous that he was sweating bullets, but Shuurei just kept on working. Yuri observed him for a moment and noticed that his outfit was all bland colors except for the bright blue sash he was wearing aroung his waist.

Shuurei stopped and let out a sigh.

"No matter how late I am in getting married, or whether or not I do at all, is no concern of someone who is just a childhood friend!"

Yuri winced, 'Ouch. What a blow to a man's ego.'

Santa leaned forward, "W-well the point I'm making is-!"

"In any case, I don't have the time to deal with you today! Go home, Santa."

"Don't call me Santa! Call me Keicho!" Yeah she would never remember that... How did the name Santa come about?

"You haven't grown up, so Santa is more appropriate." 'Oh, another blow.' 

Yuri heard footsteps and looked away from the entertaining duo to see Kochou coming their way, "Oh my! It's Ou-san's young man!"

Yuri waved at her, "Hello, Kochou-san."

Shuurei gasped, "Kochou-nee-san!"

Kochou stopped by Yuri, "Oh, Yuri-chan! You would be so much cuter if you wore real clothes! Let me dress you up?"

"Not this time, Kochou-san."  
Kochou sighed and moved towards Shuurei's desk and smiled at Shuurei. She turned her attention to Santa. "What are you here for this time, young man?" She walked even closer to him. "Are you here to hit on my cute Shuurei-chan again? You never learn." Yuri tried to muffle her laughter. Really, she did. Kochou put a hand on his cheek, "If you can wait until tonight, I'll play with you. I'll set some special time aside... just for you." 'Oh, this woman is brilliant.' 

Santa was blushing heavily, "N-no, that's alright. I'd never have enough money for your services Kochou-san!" 'Idiot.' "See you later, Shuurei!" He ran out.

Kochou laughed, "Boy! Talk about gutless!"

Yuri stopped trying to muffle her laughter, "You are a gem, Kochou-san!"

They both calmed down after a moment and Shuurei looked towards Kochou, "You're up early today."

"My client ended up having to leave during the middle of the night."

Shuurei tilted her head to the side, "Leaving the chambers of the number one woman of the Red Light District in the middle of the night?!"

Kochou looked away, "There are some idiots out there."

Yuri snorted, "That's an understatement." It had take her a while to get used to the idea of brothels. Back in the other world, they were long ago outlawed in most countries and the views on them were horrible. She had grown up thinking that women who lowered themselves to this position were disgusting, and some of them were, but others enjoyed this line of work. Plus, in this kind of era, men weren't looked down upon for cheating on their wives, after all in many marriages there was no love lost between them. Yuri refocused on the conversation.

"But thanks to that foolish man, I can spend more time with my cute Shuurei-chan and Yuri-chan! After all, Shuurei-chan, you'll only be working here for another week, right?"

Shuurei looked down, "Yes..."

"I still remember that little girl who cam all on her own, bowing her head low and asking to work here." Yuri smiled at the image. "You'd obviously been brought up really well... not to mention you carried the Kou name." Kochou closed hey eyes, caught up in the past, "You had such a grim look on your face, so I figured you were more than ready to come to the Red Light District. Then you looked up with a serious face and said, 'But I have to be home to cook in the evening, so I will have to be home by sunset!' The door guard was so confused!" Kochou and Yuri laughed while Shuurei made an embarrassed noise.

"Ahh! I asked you to forget about that!"

Kochou stopped laughing, "Quite some time has passed since then... The days go by quickly, don't they? Shuurei, make sure you come to work on your last day, okay? I have something to give you."

"Please, don't bother...!"

Kochou interrupted her, "Hey! Don't be so cold! You're the only one who has ever been able or will ever be able to get me to promise a date! Shuurei. Got that? It's a promise. Otherwise I will tell Kou-sensei and Seiran that you have been working in the Red Light District! And you too Yuri-chan! I'll tell them you didn't stop her!" 'Oh, shit.'

Shuurei held her hands up in surrender, "P-please, anything but that! I'll come, you have my word."

"Y-yeah, I'll make sure she does!" Yuri looked at Kochou, wide-eyed. 'This woman must be a demon in diguise!' 

Kochou laughed at them, "You better! And Yuri-chan, after I give Shuurei-chan her present, I want you to let me dress you up!"

Yuri sighed in resignation, "Fine."

Kochou laugehd at her despondent expression. "Oh! That reminds me, an unusual guest arrived yesterday!"

Shuurei put her hands down, "An unusual guest?"

Kochou took them to a side room where Shuurei and her took a seat while Yuri stayed standing, "Yes, a child."

Shuurei looked at her, "A child?!"

"Yes... I would say he's about 12 or 13 years old."

Yuri hummed thoughtfully, "That is a wierd guest..."

They heard a shout from upstairs, "W-wh-where am I?!"

All of their heads turned to the sound. Kochou just stated calmly, "Oh, it seems he's awake."

Yuri sighed, "I'll go get him before he freaks out too badly." She turned and walked up the stairs to where Kochou told her the boy was. She walked into the room to see him sitting up on the bed with wide eyes. She smiled at him and raised her hand in a beckoning motion, "Come with me, I'll take you to the owner of this extablishment." He nodded his head and silently followed her back down stairs to where Kochou and Shuurei were waiting.

As soon as they stopped, the boy spoke, "Where am I? How did I get here?"

They looked at him with surprise on their faces. Shuurei spoke up, "You don't remember coming here? Um... what's your name?"

"Oh, I'm To Eigetsu."

Shuurei kindly smiled, "Eigetsu-kun."

Eigetsu rubbed the back of his head, "I only arrived here yesterday and got tangled up with some gangsters. The last thing I remember is being dragged into a restaurant..." He looked at Kochou, "Um... How did I get here last night?"

"One of our regulars carried you here and asked us to put you up for a while. He paid us well for it, so we agreed."

Eigetsu gasped, "What?! I can't possible impose like that! How much is it?" He pulled a small bag out of his shirt, "I'll pay you, so please, return the money to him!" He paused and looked at the bag, "Huh? This seems rather light..." He opened the bag and looked into it with horror on his face, "What?! This is a lot less than I had!"

Yuri and Shuurei peered over his shoulder and he looked back and forth between them. Yuri whistled lowly while Shuurei talked, "You don't have enough in here to last you a month at the cheapest lodging!" They took a step away from him.

"I'm sure I had more yesterday... W-what should I do?!"

Yuri put a hand on his head, "Calm down, Eigetsu-kun."

Kochou stood up, "How about accepting our regular's generosity and staying here for the time being?" 

"B-but!"

"If you'd rather, why not stay at our place?" They looked at Shuurei, who had given the suggestion. "It's run down, but we have a lot of space, right Yuri-nee-chan?"

Yuri smiled at her before looking back at the young boy, "Right! Good idea, Shuurei! Plus it wouldn't be the first time a free-loader stayed there. In fact, I'm still there!"

Eigetsu looked down, "I'm truly sorry for imposing like this... is it really alright?"

Shuurei looked at him with a thoughtful expression, "Well, can you help me with something in exchange?"

He looked up at her in shock, "What?"

Now Shuurei looked sheepish, "I could use some help with the accounting, Yuri-nee is no help with that."

"Oi!" Yuri put her hands on her hips in mock-affront.

They ignored her, "Sure! I'm pretty good at that sort of thing!" Kochou and Yuri exchanged amused glaces.

"Then I'll leave it to you, Eigetsu-kun!"

"Yes!"

Yuri and Kochou sat and drank tea until they were done.

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After they finished, the three of them said farewell to Kochou and headed back home. Yuri was walking behind them, barely listening to their conversationg. She looked up when she heard Seiran's voice.

"Ojou-san, Yuri-san." The two younger stopped talking and all three of them saw Seiran in front of them.

"Seiran. What is it?" Shuurei asked.

"I thought we'd go to a restaurant tonight, so I came to find you two."

Shuurei looked at him doubtfully, "That's a bit extravagant!"

He smiled at her, "Well, although it's a bit late, consider this a congratulatory dinner for passing the Aptitude Test!"

Shuurei was surprised, "What? For me?" She smiled at him, "Thank you, Seiran."

The four of them walked and met up with Shouka at a fancy looking restaurant. They were seated at a table and food was soon brought out.

Yuri and Shuurei introdused the two men to Eigetsu, who then told them that he had journeyed from Koku Province.

Shouka was impressed, "It must have been quite a journey coming all the way from there!"

Eigetsu was abashed, "Y-yeah."

Yuri spoke up, "Yeah, and he is only 13!"

Shuurei continued thoughtfully, "But it is around Exam time, so a lot of people are arriving from else where, so it's kind of dangerous for those not familiar with this city. Whatever the reason you're here, I suggest you get it over with quickly and go back home."

Eigetsu looked nervous, "I guess you're right."

Whatever was going to be said next was interrupted by a few drunk men at the table behind Shuurei and Yuri. They started to go on about how they heard a woman was taking the Imperial Exams and that there was no way a woman would pass. They wondered why a woman would bother taking the exam anyways.

Eigetsu was looking at Shuurei in shock while Seiran looked pissed. Yuri was as well but she hid it under a calm facade. She was about to get up and tell them off when the table and chairs they were sitting at collapsed suddenly. Yuri grinned before adopting a shocked face and dumping her drink all over the closest man.

He looked at her with a stunned expression. She put her hand to her mouth to hide her smirk, "Oh! I am sooo sorry! The loud noise you made as you hit the ground startled me and my drink slipped! Here's a napkin." She threw her used napkin at him before turning back around. Shouka and Seiran were looking at her with amusement. "What? It was an accident." They shook their heads and turned to Shuurei.

Shuurei was still looking at the men, "W-what just happened?"

Shouka just took a sip of his drink, "I wonder." Yuri, who happened to be sitting right next to him saw him pocket a roll of metal wire. 'Sneaky.' She caught Shouka's attention and smirked at him with her brow raised. Her gaze practically screamed, 'I saw that Shouka-san.'

Seiran spoke up, "Well, whatever happened serves them right."

Shouka brought everyone's attention back to their food, "We should eat before it gets cold!" He looked at Eigetsu, "Eigetsu-kun, you should drink your soup and warm yourself up."

"R-right!"

Shouka thoughtfully spoke, "No one... can gain what's really important to them without making an effort. Take Ran-shogun and Kouyuu-dono. Being so young, they were constantly ridiculed to begin with. But in the end, they shut everyone up with a type of strength we refer to as effort. Perhaps all that is necessary is effort."

Shuurei smiled at him, "Thank you, Tou-san."

Yuri just looked at him with mock-suspicion, "That was really deep... Who are you and what did you do with Shouka-san?" They all laughed as Shouka looked at her with a face that said, 'Who, me?'

After they all calmed down they resumed eating. Shuurei poured Shouka and her some sake before turning to Eigetsu and offering him some.

He looked at her in confusion before he realized what it was. He looked worried, "N-no! No thank you!"

They all looked at him as Shuurei asked, "Aren't you curious at all?"

"A-ah, no. I'm really weak when it comes to alcohol and prefer to not even smell it."

Yuri decided to save the poor boy and changed the subject, "Hey, Eigetsu-kun... you said you had a run in with gangsters right?" He nodded. "Could they have taken the money you're missing?"

Shuurei picked up there, "Maybe they forced you to drink sake and took it when you passed out?!"

"N-no, I don't think that's what happened." At this point it seemed that he was talking to himself. "Um, but... it's not unthinkable that there'd be one or two really skilled people in the capital who could... but-!"

Seiran looked down pensively, "If that's the case, it would be the Seikin Gang."

Shuurei looked at him, "Seiran, do you know something?"

"Yeah. It's a gang that arrived in town recently. They mark themselves by wearing a blue cloth somewhere on their body." Yuri thought, 'That reminds me of someone... but who'?

Shuurei was shocked, "That's bad. Are you telling me the crime bosses are turning a blind eye to them?"

"Up until now they have. But lately... the Seikin Gang have been pretty flagrant in their activities."

Yuri whistled lowly, "The bosses won't like that."

Shouka nodded in agreement, "In that case, won't the bosses make a move soon?"

Shuurei continued, "It's obvious that the leader of the Seikin Gang isn't from here."

Seiran agreed, "Probably. If he was, he would realize his actions are suicidal."

Eigetsu's head had gone back and forth between all of them, "Umm..."

They all looked at him in suprise, but Shuurei caught on, "Oh, Eigetsu-kun, you don't know much about this city, do you?"

He looked sheepish. "No."

Seiran explained for him about how there was a clear distinction between the state side of town and the downtown area. "In this city, the Crime Bosses handle the downtown hooligans. At this time of year when more people are coming in for the Exams, they protect the peace of the downtown area. The bosses take pride in making sure that everything is kept under control."

Yuri looked up at the ceiling, "But I wonder what is taking them so long to deal with these guys?"

Shuurei added, "That's right. After all, Eigetsu-kun's money was taken!"

Eigetsu put his hands up, "Wait, we don't know that for sure!" He put his hands back down, "The money was collected for me by the people of my hometown, so I feel really bad about losing it, but-"

Shuurei cut him off, "That makes it worse!"

Eigetsu just smiled and pulled out a purple bag with a yellow pattern on it. "It's fine! As long as I have this-!" He stopped and looked at the bag before opening it. He looked inside of it, aghast. "AH!"

The rest of them jumped at his yell. Shuurei leaned towards him, "What's wrong?!"

Eigetsu was shaking, "I-i-i-i-it's gone!"

Yuri leaned forwards as well, worried. "What's gone?"

Eigetsu jumped up, "S-sorry, I have to go! I have to go back!"

Yuri got up and Shuurei said, "Wh-where?!"

Eigetsu ran off and Yuri followed him with Shuurei close behind. Yuri noticed that Shuurei was falling slightly behind, but she felt as though she should stay with Eigetsu. He turned a corner and she followed him to see a group of people with blue cloths in random places on their body. 'Oh fuck.' She grabbed Eigetsu's arm, "Eigetsu, we should go back before they see us."

But he didn't pay her any attention, instead he yelled at them, "E-excuse me!" They surrounded the two of them and Yuri put the boy behind her.

A man with a blue cape on walked to the front of the group, looking at Eigetsu. "Hey, it's you isn't it!? The guy who not only embarrassed my guys last night, but robbed them too!"

Eigetsu went to speak but Yuri tightened her grip on his arm. "Hey mister, he did no such thing! Why don't you leave us alone and move on?"

He looked at her and seemed to notice that she was not a he, "A woman? What are you doing dressing up as a man? Oh and that's an expensive looking sword! Instead of playing with this brat, why don't you come with us?"

She glared at him, "Fuck you."

A vein began to pulse on his forehead, "What did you say?"

Before she could say anything Eigetsu drew their attention to him, "U-um, excuse me, did the men you mentioned from last night happen to tell you if I dropped a token?"

'A token?'

The man smirked, "A token? Oh yeah, we've got it. We have been collecting them after all."

Eigetsu looked at him in shocked horror, "Collecting them?"

"Hey Eigetsu-kun, Yuri-nee!" Everyone looked over at the newest addition to their little party. It was Shuurei.

The man looked at them, "Who's that?"

Yuri snapped, "None of your business! Shuurei, take Eigetsu and run!" Shurrei didn't question her, she just grabbed Eigetsu and took off. Yuri was right behind them. She heard the leader send some of his men after him. "Hey you two, keep going, alright?"

"Yes, Yuri-nee! C'mon Eigetsu-kun!" Yuri slowed down a little to put more space between them. She vaguely heard them talking but was concentrating on the men who were still following them. Eigetsu tried to tell them to go a different way, but the Shuurei and Yuri followed him anyways. Shuurei pulled him to a stop, "You can't do that Eigetsu, You don't know your way around this town!"

Whatever he was going to say was interrupted by a man coming up to them. He had a blue sash around his waist. "Found you!" He went to grab them when Yuri jumped up and kicked him in the face at the same time Shuurei screamed and kneed him in the nuts.

Yuri looked at the two of them, "Talk later, now is the time for running." They looked at her in shock.

Eigetsu looked at them, "W-wow."

Shuurei smiled grimly, "Yuri-nee is an awesome fighter, plus Seiran told me that if you knee a man there, he will drop like a rock!"

"Yes, I did but... nevermind. Well done Ojou-san. Yuri-san." They turned to see Seiran walking towards them.

Shuurei gasped, "S-Seiran! Did you see that just now?"

He stopped in front of them, "Yes, but thanks to you and Yuri-san. I couldn't make much of an entrance."

Yuri just huffed a laugh, "You wanted to show off you mean." He looked at her with amusement shining in his eyes.

As he opened his mouth they heard a shout, "HEY! Did you find them?"

Another voice answered, "They should still be in the area! Search the neighboorhood thoroughly!"

"Right!"

Seiran and Yuri peered around the corner in time to see them run off. They leaned back to a standing position and looked to the two non-fighters.

Seiran spoke seriously, "At this point, they are likely to follow us home. Eigetsu-kun, where are you trying to go?"

"To a place called Kougaro in the Red Light District," Shuurei and Yuri gasped as he continued, "where I met Shuurei-san and Yuri-san earlier i-" Shuurei reached over and put a hand over his mouth. Seiran looked between the two girls who just laughed awkwardly.

A man ran up to them, "Shuurei-ojou-san! I have been looking for you!" He stopped in front of them. "Kochou-nee-san sent me. She requests that you and Yuri-san return to Kougaro with the young man and..." he looked to Seiran, "if it's not a problem, Seiran-dono too. We'll have the underlings take care of those annoying Seikin Gang members."

Shuurei looked concerned, "Take care...?"

Seiran looked at them intently, "That's a good idea! With Kougaro's status, those hoodlums won't be able to enter the premises."

Shuurei and Yuri looked at him as Shuurei asked what they were both thinking, "Seiran, you know Kougaro?"

Yuri just shook her head, "When do you have the time to go there?"

He stuck his hands in front of himself in an 'I'm innocent' gesture, "It's not what you think. We'll talk about that later..."

Yuri muttered, "I don't think we need details."

Seiran just continued as though she hadn't spoken. "Hurry!"

They all took off running with Seiran and Yuri in the lead.

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They made it to Kougaro where they were taken inside to safety. Kochou came and got them telling them that she had other guests she was taking them to.

As soon as they walked through the doorway of the room the guests were in, Shuurei stopped dead as Seiran and Yuri sighed.

Sitting at the table in the room eating sweet bean buns was Shuuei, Kouyuu... and Ryuuki.

Ryuuki said Shuurei's name with his mouth full.

Shuurei walked up to the table and looked at Ryuuki, "What are you doing here?!" Then she looked at the other two men and thought about where they were, "So... you snuck out with Ran-shogun and Kouyuu-sama to have fun at the brothel, did you?" She looked at Ryuuki with a disturbed look on her face.

Yuri was standing next to Seiran and Eigetsu, snickering.

Ryuuki denied it vehemently, "Y-you're mistaken, Shuurei! I don't need to come to a place like this for something like that! I can do it as much as I like at my own place!!"

Yuri, still snickering, whispered to Seiran, "And he dug his grave just a little deeper."

Shuurei did not looked impressed with Ryuuki's anouncement. Ryuuki tried to fix his mistake, "A-ah... well, you see... I mean... uh?"

Everyone except Shuurei found the man's predicament humorous. Yuri was no longer quietly snickering, she was now outright laughing. "R-Ryuuki," she gasped with laughter. "Y-you suck with these th-things when it comes to Shuurei, e-eh?" She bent over with her hands on her knees trying to get her breath back. Seiran reached over and grabbed her shoulder so she didn't fall down. After a moment she stood straight and beamed at Seiran, "I'm alright now, thanks."

He just turned his head a nodded. Yuri just shrugged and looked at the crowd around the table, so she missed his blush, but Shuuei didn't. Shuuei threw a lecherous grin his way and received a glare in return.

Everyone turned their focus back to the entertainment, namely Shuurei and Ryuuki.

Shuurei was looking at Ryuuki, "So? What are you doing here?"

Ryuuki nodded his head towards Eigetsu, "I came to see him."

Shuurei was surprised. "Eh? You came to see Eigetsu-kun?"

Ryuuki explained, "I heard that Shuuei took him under his protection yesterday and brought him here."

Kochou added, "Ran-sama was in my rooms when he was called out because the boy was being harassed by gangsters."

A metaphorical light went off over Shuurei's head, "Then, Kochou-nee-san, the man who left you was Ran-shogun?!"

Yuri looked at the man in question, "Of course the pervert was here."

Everyone turned to look at the man who was now standing between Seiran and Kouyuu. He just looked sheepish.

Kochou continued, "He's got quite the nerve treating me, of all people, that way. Don't you think?"

Yuri sighed, "Kochou-san, I think you should ban him for the insult."

Shuuei spluttered, "W-what?"

"Just kiddding."

Shuuei heaved a sigh of relief and turned his attention to Eigetsu who asked, "Was anything taken from me?"

Shuuei looked at him shrewdly, "You know... you're acting completely different from how you were yesterday..." Eigetsu made a noise of confusion. "Well, yesterday... When someone brought me to where you were... You were arguing with members of the Seikin Gang who apparently lost to you in a drinking game. They refused to pay up and instead attacked you. You knocked them out and took their money as compensation. I saw you drop something, but you picked it back up and went off somewhere. When I found you again later, you were half asleep. You insisted on going to the number one brothel in the city though, so I brought you here. You didn't appear to have had anything taken from you though..."

Eigetsu looked downcast. Ryuuki asked him, "What did you lose?"

"U-um... my wooden Admittance Token!" That shocked all of them into silence. "It seems they targeted me because they were after it."

Yuri made a noise, "Earlier...! Their leader said that they have been collecting the tokens!"

Kouyuu was upset, "They're collecting them?!"

Ryuuki looked just as angry, "Are you sure?!"

Yuri nodded, "He was bragging about having taken Eigetsu's."

Their conversation was stopped by one of the brothel's guards opening the door. "Kochou-nee-san."

"What is it?"

"A member of the Seikin Gang just came in."

"What?!"

"Yeah. It's the kid who always comes to visit Shuurei-ojou-san."

Shuurei's mouth dropped open, "Santa?!"

Shuurei ran out of the room with everyone following. They made it downstairs just as Shuurei laid into Santa for being an idiot.

Yuri listened as Ryuuki questioned the relationship the boy had with Shuurei as she kept yelling at him. "He is her childhood playmate, although he has been chasing after her for years. It's been hard to keep him away from her. I actually threw him in the river during winter one time."

Yuri just looked at him with admiration, "Woah Seiran. I never knew just how protective you could be. I'm surprised he still comes around her, although Kochou has taken to scaring him off."

They noticed that Shuurei had stopped yelling and looked over to see Santa kneeling with his blue sash thrown on the floor. "I thought it would be cool to join a gang. I wanted to do something that would impress the girl I like and earn her respect."

Yuri looked at Shuurei and stepped behind Seiran, "Oh boy, she is pissed!" She peered over his shoulder so as not to miss anything. This is the most exciting thing that had happened in forever! She was loving every minute of it!

Santa looked at Seiran, "And I wanted to prove to my love rival that I could do just as well."

Yuri giggled and poked Seiran in the side, "What do you think of that, oh mighty love rival."

He just smirked at her over his shoulder before looking back at the train wreck in front of them.

She heard Ryuuki ask Shuuei who he meant. Shuuei just put his hand on his face and sighed.

Shuurei was confused, "What are you going on about, Santa?" Then she tore him apart by one, not realizing that she was the girl, and two, saying how if she had been the girl he tried to impress, she would have cut all ties with him. Yuri could practically hear Santa's heart shatter.

Eigetsu was still worried about his token. "So, is my token at the Seikin's Headquarters?"

Santa looked at him, "Yes, but actually... they are planning to come and make Kougaro their new headquarters." Kouyuu asked him when they were coming. "Tonight."

Shuuei spoke up, "So they'll be coming here and bringing the tokens with them... How convenient."

Kochou called out to Shuuei. "The Seikin Gang is our quarry."

"Yes, but the circumstances have changed. If possible, I would like for us to handle this issue."

Yuri noticed Kochou's eyes turn hard. "Impossible. If we don't deal with them it will undermine our standing in the city."

Shuuei bargained with her, "How about we promise to back off once we get what we are looking for."

Kochou gave in after a moment, "I guess that's fine. We were only giving them a few more days of free reign anyways." She looked at two of her men who then nodded at her.

Shuuei, noticing that her, Shuurei, and Eigetsu were confused, explained what she meant. "Kochou is one of the leaders in the Gang Alliance. She is in charge of the Red Light District. She is said the be the woman controlling the Gang Alliance from behind the scenes."

Yuri looked over to Kochou who was standing there as if this was nothing important. "Wow Kochou-san. You are one scary lady, you know that?"

Kochou just pat her on the head, "Yeah, but be comforted by the knowledge that I like you."

Yuri laughed. Kochou gave the order to have every business in the district to close for the night and lock up. By the time night fell, the Red Light District was dark and silent.

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Yuri was hidden outside in the shadows with Seiran on one side of the courtyard. Shuuei and Ryuuki were on the opposite side. Kouyuu, Shuurei, Santa, and Eigetsu were inside. They were waiting for the Seikin Gang to arrive.

She heard them yelling from the street about how they would take over Kougaro. She looked around at all of the men that Kochou had round up and doubted that could ever happen. She tightened the grip on her daggers, having decided against her sword in a soon to be crowded fight.

The Seikin leader ordered his men to break down Kougaro's closed gate. As soon as they succeeded, the leader came in and looked around.

She heard Kochou call out, "That's far enough!" Yuri sweatdropped when the leader was knocked down by a giant snowball. 'I must remember to never piss that woman off.' "So you dared to come, you bunch of shameless lowlifes. We give you a little freedom, and you act like you own the world. We are about to show you what you have earned for what you've done in our territory! We won't go easy on you! Tonight, this place is surrounded by all the leader's of this city's underworld!"

The leader stumbled to his feet, "W-what?!"  
They all moved out of the shadow's into the condemned group's sight. Kochou started talking again, "You'll be sorry that you ever stepped foot in here. Now... let them have it!"

The Seikin group was sorely outnumbered and they knew it. Most of them tried to put up a fight but there was no use. Yuri decided there were more than enough men to fight, so she was looking for the bag Santa described as holding the tokens. She knocked out a few of the Seikin men if they were in her way and searched them for the bag.

She noticed the leader and some of his men run inside. Where Shuurei and Eigetsu were. Shit! She ran after them, but kept getting blocked by the fights going on. She finally made it inside to see Eigetsu take out the leader before throwing Shuurei up in the air to save her from the men that had snuck up behind her.

'What the hell...?' Eigetsu was kicking ass. She heard Ryuuki, Seiran, and Shuuei run up behind her but she was too shocked with what she was seeing to look at them.

Eigetsu jumped up, caught Shuurei, and landed without even stumbling. She saw him say something to Shuurei, but her mind was a little slow at the moment. She snapped out of it when she saw Eigetsu drop to his knees. They all ran towards the two when Eigetsu fell to the floor, unconscious.

One of Kochou's men came and took him to another room while the rest of them gathered up the tokens that were scattered on the floor. Once that was done they went to where Eigetsu was and saw Kochou staring at him.

Yuri explained how he took out the leader and the other two. After she told them, she stopped and thought aloud, "But, I thought Eigetsu couldn't fight?"

Shuurei spoke up from where she was going through the tokens. "It was the sake. When he drinks it, he becomes someone else... He said his name was Yogetsu."

They all turned and stared at the boy who was still sleeping. The gang leaders started arguing over who would take him into their group when Ryuuki stepped forward with one of the Admittance Tokens in his hand, "I hate to break it to you, but we had an eye on him first."

One of the leaders pointed at him, "And who are you? What's your name?"

"Ryuuki. Shi Ryuuki."

All of the gang member began to laugh, "So, you have the same name as the Emperor, huh? I guess we'll have to obey you then, right?" Their laughter slowly came to a halt. "Regardless, we saw him first."

"Not quite." He held up the token, "The moment Eigetsu accepted this, I had set my eyes on him."

The leaders looked to the unconscious boy, "He is a Imperial Examinee?!" They changed the subject to the Seikin Gang. Shuuei and Ryuuki berrated them for not acting against the small gang sooner. She zoned out of the conversation, uninterested, and leaned against the wall by Eigetsu. She jumped when Eigetsu suddenly woke up and shot out of his chair.

He looked at Ryuuki, "Is that my exam ticket?!"

Ryuuki gave him and apologetic look, "No it isn't. Shuurei did you find it?"

"No. Though the other Eigetsu did say it wasn't here. But he fell asleep before he could tell me where it was."

Eigetsu ran over to a sake barrell, "Then I will drink some sake! Ask Yogetsu where it is when he comes out!" Yuri caught the back of his shirt as he went to dunk his head. Shuurei grabbed one of his arms and helped her pull the boy away from the barrel.

Shuurei yelled at him, "Don't do that!"

Eigetsu frustratedly said, "But that token can't be reissued! I have to find it!"

"I know! I completely understand how you feel! But...!"

A voice came from the dorrway and they turned to see who it was. "Um... Excuse me. Pardon my intrusion..."

Shuurei stared, "Santa's father?"

Ou looked towards them, "Oh Shuurei-san? I haven't seen you in a long time! Thank you for always being so kind to my follish son." He looked around the room, "Now, is there a To Eigetsu-san here?"

Yuri and Shuurei let go of Eigetsu in shock. "Th-that would be me..."

Ou looked at him, "Yes, yes. You! Thank you so much for the order you placed last night." He walked over to Eigetsu, "Having such an outstanding young man, the youngest in history to pass the Admittance Exam, visit our store was a great honor!" He pulled Eigetsu's Exam pass out of his pocket.

Eigetsu grabbed it and looked at the man, "My Exam Token! Did Yog- no, I mean, did I give this to you?"

"Oh you don't remember? You came to our store and said that you had gotten into a little trouble. You handed this Token to me and asked me to deliver it, and a bottle of our most expensive wine, to the number one Brothel in the city tonight. Those were your words, were they not?" He waved over his other son that had come with him and opened the box he was carrying. "And here is the wine you ordered. My, you do have a discriminating taste though. Even the Emperor rarely enjoys wine of this quality! One bottle cost ten gold and 30 silver coins!"

Everyone in the room except Shuurei, Eigetsu, Ou, and Santa's older brother began to shake with silent laughter.

Shuurei looked at Eigetsu, "No wonder you had so little money left."

The man turned his attention to a still unconscious Santa, "Now then, when my foolish third son wakes up, please be so kind as to tell him to bring himself home. Well then. My humble store welcomes your patronage in the future!" The two of them left. Soon all of the other Gang leaders and members filtered out leaving Ryuuki, Shuuei, Kouyuu, Seiran, Shuurei, Yuri, Kochou, and Eigetsu.

Ryuuki stood in fron of Eigetsu with Shuuei and Kouyuu flanking him. "To Eigetsu. From Seika Village in Koku Province. Suikyodo Temple serving as your sponsor. At age 12, you topped the Koku Provincial Exam, and this year, at age 13, you will be taking the Imperial Exam. I'm very glad your Token was returned to you. Pass the Exam and then come and serve for me."

Eigetsu looked at him with dawning realization, "You are...!" He stopped and then smiled, "Yes! I will!"

He looked towards Shuurei, "You too. I'll be waiting for you."

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The rest of the week passed without incedent, and Yuri and Shuurei were at Kougaro. It was nearing the end of Shuurei's last day of working there.

Kochou looked at them, "So, today is your last day Shuurei. You too Yuri, you won't be coming by anymore."

Shuurei smiled gently, "I know. Thank you for everything Kochou-nee-san."

Yuri grinned at her, "Oh, I'm sure I'll see you sometime in the future! Maybe I'll just come and visit every once in a while."

Kochou just shook her head in amusement before turning to Shuurei, "I have a present for you, remember? And Yuri, you told me I could fix you up today!"

Yuri grimaced. "Give Shuurei her present first."

They followed Kochou to another room where there was a box sitting on a table, "This is a complete set of make up, with instructions on how apply it."

Shuurei was stunned, "B-but, I don't wear make up."

Kochou got in her face with a sad look, "We had a promise, didn't we?" Her threat of telling Shouka and Seiran where she worked hung in the air.

Yuri and Shuurei came to a realization. Yuri looked at her, "Now that you mention it, are you acquainted with Shouka-san and Seiran?"

Kochou looked shocked for a moment before smiling, "Yes." She had Shuurei sit down and started to put make up on her face as she explained. "I met Shouka-san shortly after you started working here Shuurei-chan. He came here on his own."

"Tou-san knew I was working here?!"

"Yeah. He bowed his head politely and said, 'Please take good care of my daughter.'"

"What?"

Yuri chuckled, "That sounds like Shouka-san alright."

Kochou continued, "He said, 'My daughter only recently lost her mother. From here on in, she will probably encounter many things that I, as a man, will not understand. So please, take care of her.' Just like that." She paused. "Then after that, Seiran came by. He said the exact same things as Shouka-san and then left. I couldn't help but laugh!"

"Seiran too?!" Shuurei exclaimed.

Yuri laughed, "So that's why he knew about Kougaro."

Shuurei glanced at her out of the corner of her eye, "Worried that it was from another way?" Yuri stubbornly turned her head to the side to hide her blush and pout.

Kochou sat back, "There, your make up is done."

Yuri looked at Shuurei, "Oh Shuurei, you look wonderful."

"Really?"

Kochou held up a mirror, "Take a look for yourself." Shuurei looked into it and gasped. "Remember this. Make up is a woman's war paint. Make sure you wear it whenever you head into any sort of battle. That way you definitely cannot cry. If you cry, your make up will run, and no matter how little you applied, your face will end up looking disgraceful. That's why, no matter how difficult things get, you'll keep yourself from crying." Kochou lowered the mirror and looked Shuurei in the eye, "You're heading into a battle, aren't you? Give it everything you've got! Your courage and determination make me proud."

"Kochou-nee-san..." Shuurei's eyes teared up.

Kochou poked her in the forehead lightly, "Come on, don't you start crying! Listen... no matter what others say, you must never lose your pride as a woman. Even if you find yourself standing on the same stage as men, don't ever try to become a man. As a woman, do things that a man can't." Kochou kissed the younger girl on the forehead, "And if anyone gives you a hard time, be sure to tell me."

Yuri piped in, "Me too! Between me and Kochou-san, that person will be unrecognizable."

Kochou laughed, "That's right. If that person ever dares to come to the Red Light District, I'll give him a beating he'll never forget before throwing him out!"

Shuurei gave a watery smile, "Coming from you two, I know it's no joke."

Kochou put a hand on her head, "That's because we're serious! We're not the only ones, either. The same goes for Shouka-sensei and Seiran. There are many people around you who care about you very much." She put her hand down, "Go forth. You will definitely become an aazing woman!" She stood up. "Now that's enough of this talk! Yuri-chan, it's your turn! Go behind that screen over there and put this on!" Kochou handed Yuri a bundle of cloth and grudgingly did as she said.

After a few minutes of struggling, she stepped out from behind the screen. She was wearing a white robe over an solid emerald green under-dress. The green fabric came up to around her collar bone. The white robe tied closed under her breast giving it a v-neck. The sleeves of the white robe were tight on her arms until right before the elbow, they flowed after that to her wrists in the front and to her thighs in the back. There was a solid band of white cloth that went around her stomach with an emeral green sash tied over it in a ribbon. From under that band, a gauzy material went down to her calves, with browns and greens in a pattern on it. The green material matched her eyes perfectly, and the white made a stark contrast to her midnight locks. She had solid brown satin slippers on her feet.

Shuurei gaped, "Yuri-nee, you look so pretty!"

Kochou got up and grabbed her by her arm, "Now to do your hair!" Kochou sat her down in a chair and combed her hair out before fixing it. When she was done she handed the mirror to Yuri. On the left side of her head, some of her hair was braided and then put into a bun, with a decorative silver hairpiece holding it there. The hairpiece went around the entire bun and had silver chains dangling from the bottom of it. It was simple and yet elegant.

Kochou put the mirror down, "Now, I'll do your make up and then you two can go home!" She did Yuri's make up much the same way she did Shuurei's. Light pinches on her cheeks to make them flush with color, a light pink color on her lips, and some kohl around her eyes to make them pop. She once again looked into the mirror and was slightly shocked at how so little make up made such a huge difference.

She stared at her reflection, "Wow." She stood up and looked to Kochou. "Thank you. Really. I don't know how often I wil dress up like this, but it is fun to see myself like this." She then looked at her clothes, "I'll go get changed so you can have these back." She began to walk back to the screen when Kochou stopped her.

"Keep it. I have plenty of other clothes like this, so giving you this one isn't a problem."

Yuri gave her a ecstatic smile, "Thank you!"

Kochou just waved her off, "Don't worry about it! Now, you two should head on home." Yuri and Shuurei said goodbye and began to leave when Kochou signaled for Shuurei to come to her. She smirked, "Let me know how Seiran reacts when he sees her, yeah?"

Shuurei giggled, "I will. Next time that I see you, remind me to tell you!" She hurried to catch up to Yuri and the two of them walked home.

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They arrived back at the Kou residence and were first seen by Shouka. He smiled at them, "You both look wonderful!" Then he went off to make some tea for him and Yuri, since Shuurei said she didn't want anything right then.

They went further in and ran into Seiran. He saw Shuurei first and smiled gently at her, "That looks good on you, Ojou-san." Then he looked at Yuri and his smile froze on his face.

Yuri shuffled her feet nervously as he just stared at her. She blushed as his eyes heated up before he closed them. He took a deep breath and opened them again, the heat gone. He had some color in his cheeks though. "Y-Yuri-san... you look, um... good." Her blush darkened as did his.

"Th-thanks..." She looked down, "I think I'm going to go to bed now. Goodnight!" She then ran off leaving a highly amused Shuurei and a stunned Seiran.

Shouka walked up to Shuurei stifling her giggles and Seiran still looking at where Yuri had been standing. "Oh? Where did Yuri go? She was going to drink some tea with me..." Seiran blushed and said goodnight before going off leaving Shouka to look to Shuurei for answers. She explained to him what had happened and he chuckled. "They would be good together, wouldn't they Shuurei?"

"Yes, Tou-san they would. We will just have to wait and see what happens, ne?" She bid him goodnight and left for her room.

Shouka stood there for a few moments after, thinking about what could happen in the future. "I guess we will..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew! Just about 8000 words with this one! The deviations are slowly but surely making their way in, only minor things are changing so far, just enough that Yuri isn't an awkward addition (I hope!).
> 
> Enter To Eigetsu! Oh, and a Little fluffy fluff-fluff at the end there! It came at me like a curve ball, I swear! but after I put it in I liked it! So their is definitely some attraction going on, but will it be acted upon any time soon? Who knows?! I don't even really know when anything will seriously happen with them! Yes, I have some more fluff planned, but nothing life changing yet! I'm thinking a certain Sa Clan member that is certainly more than a little crazy will get the ball rolling between them!
> 
> Review and let me know what you thought! Love? Hate? Could have been better?
> 
> ~GG


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *** READ: VERY IMPORTANT ***
> 
> I feel that I should warn all of you that the rating for this fic is 'MATURE'! The reason being that the Dursley's specifically Vernon, are more abusive in this story than what is strictly in canon. I hope that it will not turn some of you off from my story, but that is how it will be. There was a very slight hinting of it in earlier chapters. However, I would like to point out, THERE WAS NO RAPE INVOLVED. I do not think that I would be able to handle writing a rape scene. I have never experienced abuse, so if Yuri's reactions and her talking about it are unrealistic, I apologize. The abuse is not that detailed in this chapter, but it probably will be in future ones. You've been warned!
> 
> *** READ THE ABOVE: VERY IMPORTANT ***
> 
> I own nothing! NOTHING I SAY!!
> 
> (T-T)
> 
> I don't even own a bed!! All I have is a futon!! (So what if it is actually extremely comfortable, it's still a futon!)

Over the next few days, Shuurei had managed to convince Yuri to buy more women's clothes to wear more often. It shocked the other townspeople that knew her personally when they had seen her wearing women's clothing. It was quickly becoming a common sight, unless Yuri was training or working.

Finally, it was the day of the Imperial Exam. Eigetsu and Shuurei were ready to prove to themselves and others that they could do this. Yuri helped Shuurei with her make up before they met up with the men outside. Yuri was wearing 'work out' men's clothing with her sword attatched to her hip; she had decided to join Seiran in escorting the two Examinees. Eigetsu had shown up earlier that day to go with Shuurei.

They walked them all the way to the Palace, talking about random things to distract them. Once they got there, Yuri hugged them both, wishing them good luck. Seiran forwent the hugs, but wished them luck as well. Yuri and Seiran stood there until the other two were no longer visible.

As they were about to leave, they heard a man who had yet to enter, talking to one of his friends, "Did you see them? The woman and the little boy? Why they are allowing trash to take the exam, I will never understand."

-"You are trash that we just can't get rid of you worthless freak!" *smack*- 

"They both need to be taught their place."

-"Learn your place, girl. We took you in out of the kindness of our hearts, and you will earn your keep."-

"Especially the woman, she belongs on her back-"

-Rough, searching hands. "Tell anyone about this girl, and I mean anyone, and you will regret it."-

Yuri appeared before the man and punched him in the stomach. He fell to his hands and knees gasping for breath. Seiran put a restraining hand on her shoulder, but she just shrugged him off. She glared down at the man, "I would be careful of what you say in public. Especially about those two, seeing as I am positive they will end up in the top three." Mutterings broke out at this. Yuri looked around at the gathered crowd, "If I ever hear anyone insulting them, I will kick their ass. Then I'll-" She was interrupted when Seiran picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. "Seiran! Put me down!" He began walking towards the Kou Residence before answering.

"No. They heard your warning, no need to incite panic with further descriptions of what you would do."

She struggled against him but his arms were like a steel trap, plus she didn't want to actually hurt him. She gave up on trying to force her way down, "Please let me down? I'm calm now."

His snort of disbelief answered that.

She propped her elbows on his back with her head in her hands and pouted. They were silent for a while before she spoke up, "Their ignorance and bigotry just makes me so mad! How can they sit there and judge Shuurei and Eigetsu like that!?"

She felt and heard him sigh, "That's not all that's bothering you is it." It wasn't a question, not really. But he was right. It had been a long time since she had had flashbacks of her relatives, more specifically her uncle. She truly hated very few people, but that man was one of them.

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Seiran was worried. Yuri had gone quiet after his statement. Every so often Seiran noticed her eyes would become distant and when he would ask what she was thinking about, she would answer, 'the past.' But this silence was different. It was a more... chaotic silence. She was tense and he could feel her shaking. Coming to a decision, he made an abrupt turn and took her somewhere he had discovered years ago.

It was up along the river, quite a ways from a walking path. There was a cave with a tree outside of it that was beautiful when it bloomed. The cave only went back about ten feet, but it's ceiling was high enough that he didn't have to duck to enter, so it was perfect. Sometimes, when he wasn't busy, he would come here and relax. He had yet to see another person here, so it became like his own little sanctuary. He made sure that there was always wood for a fire, and a blanket to keep warm.

Seiran entered, being careful not to bump his passenger into anything before kneeling and gently setting her down. Her eyes were distant and her face was hard. He put the blanket over her before starting a fire and sitting across from her. The fire was a little bit past them in the cave, but close enough to give them warmth.

He sat and watched her, calmly waiting until she came back from her thoughts. They had several hours until the Imperial Exam was over to talk.

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Yuri had been so lost in her thoughts that she was shocked to find herself in a cave with Seiran sitting across from her.

She blinked owlishly at him, "What are we doing here?"

He looked at her steadily, "I wanted to talk to you... I find this place peaceful, and was hoping it would help."

"Help what?"

He looked away for a moment before seemingly gathering strength and turning back to her. "Why did what he said set you off so badly?"

"Well, any woman would be angry if someone said something like that!"

Seiran nodded his head, "True, but you were beyond anger." She couldn't meet his eyes, instead looking at the floor. "You were... I don't know how to explain it. But you know what I am talking about." He paused, probably waiting for her to look back up, but when she didn't he continued. "Yuri-san..." he sighed, "if you don't want to talk about it, I will drop it. But, I sincerely think that you should tell someone about it, if you don't want to tell me."

Yuri knew her voice was shaking, "Why does it matter? The past is in the past."

"Even if you try to forget your past, it will never go away."

Yuri thought for a moment. "I guess... it's just, I have never told anyone about anything that happened to me. I became so used to no one caring, that when I had people that I could have told... out of habit, I never said anything."

"You mean about things that happened at the magic school?"

"No... with my relatives." She stared resolutely at the ground, not wanting to see the pity she knew would come, the 'disgust' that always seemed to find it's way onto people's faces.

Yuri took a deep breath and started talking. "I-I... When my parent's died, I was sent to live with my mother's sister, Petunia, her husband, V-Vernon, and their son, Dudley. My mother was the first in her family to be able to use magic, and Petunia hated her for it. She was filled with jealousy and eventually it turned to hate. From what I was told, when my parents died, Petunia and my mother hadn't talked in a few years. The hate that festered in Petunia for her sister transferred to me. When I started showing signs of magic, it went from bad to worse..." She swiped at the tears that fell down her cheeks." Yuri pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. "I was 15 months old and they put me in a small cupboard under the stairs. It was where I stayed until I turned 11... V-Vernon hated anything that he deemed as abnormal, and I am the very definition as such to him. H-he would p-punish me for doing anything freakish, blame me for anything that went wrong... He would throw me into my c-cupboard..." She started crying in earnest and hyperventilating, remembering the spiders, the closed in space, the 'darkness'... The pain, oh 'God', the 'pain'!

She was lost in her memories.

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Seiran crawled to where she was curled in upon herself and pulled the shaking woman into his arms. She struggled at first, apparently not recognising him at the moment. He tried to avoid her fists and eventually trapped her hands behind her back while pressing her face into the crook of his neck. He wished he could meet this so called family of hers. He would have made them regret everything they had done to her.

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Yuri felt arms around her and lost it, fighting against them. Then, she couldn't move her arms and her face was pushed against something soft. "No. Nononono please, uncle, NO! I'm sorry, so sorry, I won't do it again, please please no..."

Her cries of horror changed into relief when she recognized the smell coming from the person holding her, the sweet yet musky smell that comes after a rainstorm. "S-Seiran...?" His arms loosened around hers and she threw her arms around his neck burying her face into his shoulder.

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Seiran loosened his grip on Yuri when she said his name and was momentarily shocked when she locked her arms around him and began crying even harder than she had been. He wrapped one arm around her while putting the other on the back of her head, silently offering his support. Eventually Yuri's cries slowed until stopping completely. Seiran craned his neck to look at her face, only to see that she had fallen asleep on him. He readjusted to a slightly more comfortable position before tightening his arms around her.

'Never again. If I can help it, no one will ever hurt you like that ever again...'

He slowly drifted off, not releasing his hold on the strong yet fragile woman, even in sleep.

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Seiran opened his eyes and blinked for a few moments trying to figure out where he was. He looked around until he realized that there was someone laying on him. He looked down to see Yuri curled up in his lap, one hand gripping one of his while her other hand had a tight hold on his shirt.

The memories of their conversation filtered through his mind and he put his free hand, that had fallen to his side in sleep, on her head. She shifted in her sleep and made a distressed noise until he softly ran his hand through her hair. She calmed down and her breathing evened back out.

He sat there for a few moments, thinking about what he had learned and one thought kept running through his head, 'How far did the abuse go?'

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Yuri came back to consciousness with the feeling of someone running their hand through her hair. She knew it was Seiran from his smell. She realized that she was laying on his lap and she slowly sat up with her face bright red. She moved to get off and found that she was gripping his hand tightly. She looked up at him, fearing the look that might be on his face and relaxed at the compassionate gaze he was giving her. Not pity, not disgust for being weak.

He smiled gently at her and she gave him a small, but geniune, smile back. She tightened her hand briefly before letting go, "Thank you."

He grabbed her arm gently before she got too far, "Wait. I have just one question, and then we need to go pick up Ojou-san and Eigetsu-kun." She hesitated before nodding for him to continue. He took both of her hands in his, "Did... did your uncle..." She suddenly understood what he was trying to ask and squeezed his hands.

"N-no. It never went that far. I think that it eventually would have, but he always stopped before actually doing anything... He would t-touch me and threaten it, but he never actually r-raped me."

Seiran released a sigh, "Thank god." He hugged her quickly before sitting back. "If you ever want to talk about it, I will listen."

She missed the wamth that his hug had given her, but luckily still heard what he had said. "Thank you. Really. It felt good to talk about it a little, so maybe I will take you up on that offer in the future." She smiled at him again. "Well! That is enough depressing talk for the day, I am going to go rinse my face off in the river and then we can go!" She wanted to get rid of the evidence of tears she could feel dried to her face. She didn't want to worry Shuurei with her tear-stained face.

He waited patiently for her and gave her a piece of cloth to dry her face. "Better?"

"Much. Thank you, again."

"You don't need to thank me, I'm glad I could help at all." He smiled at her again before offering his hand to help her from her kneeling position. If he noticed she was reluctant in letting go of his hand, he didn't say anything.

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Yuri would freely admit to anyone that asked her. Ran Ryuuren was one of the oddest people she had ever met.

She loved it.

# FLASHBACK #

After Yuri's little break down, they had gone to pick up Shuurei and Eigetsu to find someone that looked remarkly similar to Shuuei talking with them. She noticed that he was holding a flute and was dressed... interestingly. He was wearing so many different colors that there was no way he could every go unnoticed, even in a crowd. He was wearing a head band with longer cloth covering the sides of his face and the back of his neck. There was a huge jewel in the center of it on his forehead. And were those... feathers sticking up from the back of it?!

Yuri gave a startled laugh before turning to Seiran. "Who is that?"

Seiran gave a put-upon sigh before answering. "That is Ran-shogun's younger brother, Ran Ryuuren. He has... ecclectic tastes..."

Before Yuri could ask anything else, a god-awful sound went through the air. Yuri looked aorund for the source, only to find that Ryuuren was playing his flute. "What the hell?"

Seiran winced. "Yes, he is rather, eh, fond of playing his flute."

"He does know that he sucks at it right?"

"I don't think he cares."

"Ah. Well, best go meet him... maybe he'll stop playing for a while."

Ryuuren did in fact stop as they walked up. Shuurei looked at the source fo his sudden silence and saw them. "Seiran! Nee-chan!"

Yuri gave her a hug, "How was it?"  
"Hard. Ah that's right! Yuri-nee, this is Ran Ryuuren, Ran-shogun's younger brother. Ryuuren, this is Kazeno Yuri. She is like an older sister to me."

Ryuuren eyed her for a moment before pointing his flute at her. "Shuurei's nee-chan! I have decided; you are my third kindred spirit!"

Yuri looked at him oddly, "Who are first two?"

"Shuurei and Eigetsu of course!" She just gave a comprehending sound before looking a Seiran with an accusing look. The look clearly said, 'You could have warned me that his eccentricity didn't end with his clothes!'

He just looked away innocently. 'Jerk.'

As Ryuuren came home with them to eat, Yuri decided that even though he was a little weird, she liked him.

# END FLASHBACK #

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It was almost spring once again, and today was the day that Shuurei's results for the Imperial Exam would arrive.

Shuurei handed the scroll with her results to Shouka, too nervous to open it herself.

Shouka opened it and read what was written before putting it down with a serious look on his face. Yuri, who had gripped Shuurei's hand in anticipation, tightened her grip.

Shouka looked at Shuurei and smiled, "You passed! And scored third place in the results."

Yuri laughed and hugged the stunned Shuurei while Shouka and Seiran congradulated her. Yuri leaned back with her hand on the girl's shoulders, "You did great Shuurei! Third place!! Though I wonder who took first and second..."

Seiran laughed, "How does it feel to be the first female to take and pass the Imperial Examination, Ojou-san?"

Shuurei smiled beatifically, "It feels amazing."

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Shuurei left for her Initiation Ceremony a few weeks after spring came. This ceremony was only for those who were eligible to become Court Officials.

The four of them stood in front of their home with Shuurei facing Yuri, Seiran, and Shouka.

Yuri wiped away a fake tear, "Shouka-san, Seiran, our little Shuurei is leaving us and will never come back!"

Seiran just shook his head in amusement of her antics while Shouka looked stricken at the idea. Shuurei laughed, "Yuri-nee, stop exaggerating!" She then straightened up and looked each of the in the eye. She bowed, "Tou-san, Seiran, Yuri-nee. I'll be on my way now." Then she stood back up.

Shouka smiled at her, "Do your best!"

"I will!"

They stood there and watched as Shuurei walked off, head held high. Once she was out of sight, Yuri went back inside while Seiran went to work at another of his odd jobs. She thought about Shuurei and the problems she might run into before thinking about Eigetsu and how he might be treated. 'I hope they'll both just work through it...'

She laughed when she thought about how she had told that group of men that Shuurei and Eigetsu would come out in the top three. Really, she was going for the shock value when she said it. It's not that she doubted the two of them would do well, but still, some of the people who took that test studied for it for years! And to have Shuurei come in third place was bad enough, but when a 13 year old Eigetsu took first place and with Shuuei's 18 year old brother taking second place, it threw everyone for a loop. Even the person who placed in fourth was supposedly young, around Shuurei's age.

Shaking her head at the amazing feat of people so young, she decided to train for a while, and then go for a walk through town.

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She arrived back at the estate just as Seiran arrived with Shuurei and Eigetsu in tow. She took one look at Eigetsu before sighing, "What happened to you?" Then she grabbed his arm and started to drag him with her, "Nevermind, I probably don't want to know. Just tell me the other guy looks worse."

Eigetsu laughed as she set him down in a chair, "I don't know. The last thing I remember is running out of a noble's house after having some sake forced on me."

She wet a rag and started wiping at his face, healing the small scrapes and bruises as she went. "Well, in that case I am positive the other guy looks worse." She finished healing everything that was visible, "There. Is anything else giving you pain?"

Eigetsu blushed and shook his head, "No, I'm fine now. Thank you." Yuri had taken Eigetsu under her wing fairly quickly as a younger brother, so about a week after he and Shuurei had taken the Exam, she had sat him down and told him about her life before, sans the relatives. Seiran was still the only one she had said anything about them to.

Eigetsu took it very well, all things considered. Although, having an alter ego come out when he drinks sake probably made it easier to believe in the unbelievable.

Shuurei went to prepare for dinner as Yuri went to clean up. Apparently Kouyuu and Shuuei were going to be joining them tonight.

Soon, the two guests arrived and they were all seated at the table. They had all been having small conversatinos with eachother until Shouka asked a quesiton that got everyone's attention. "By the way, when will Shuurei's group receive notice of their placements, Kouyuu-dono?"

Kouyuu looked at him, "The notices should be going out soon."

"Oh, alright."

After a moment, Shuuei stated, "As it turns out, this year's National Examinations results were fairly controversial."

Kouyuu closed his eyes, "For example, your younger brother who skipped the Initiation Ceremony."

Yuri laughed, "I can't wait to see him again. Sounds like something I would have done."

Shuuei looked exasperated, "Yes, well, he is beyond even my comprehension. I knew he would run away, I just didn't think it would happen so soon."

Kouyuu looked at him, "He is like his older brother. Neither of you take anything seriously."

Eigetsu spoke up quietly, "Um... he's quite an amazing person though, inside and out."

As Shuurei began to speak, Seiran looked at her indulgently while Yuri just giggled quietly. "That may be true, but! To be blunt, if he had gotten first place, I would have lost hope for the future of the world! It would have been cruel and unjust!" A righteous fury was burning in her gaze, "While everyone else was studying so hard, he would take naps! On the odd occasions that he was awake, he would always be playing that flute of his!" They all winced. "On top of all of that, after eating a meal I prepared, he had the gall to say, 'If you miss out on finding a husband, I'll hire you as my personal chef!' I seriously wanted to kick his brains out!"

Yuri stopped giggling long enough to question, "Isn't that kind of harsh? After all, I think that was a compliment, in an awkward sort of way..."

Shuurei, either ignoring her or not hearing her, went on. "I restrained myself only because he is Ran-shogun's younger brother, but...!"

Shuuei looked at her with a sort of sheepish expression. "Thank you for restraining yourself, Shuurei-dono."

Shuurei realized that she had just ranted in front of them and looked down with an embarrassed flush. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-"

Kouyuu joyfully interrupted, "It's alright, Shuurei. You were telling the truth!"

Shouka steered the conversation back to neutral ground. "Anyways, I bet the two of you are excited for your first day of work tomorrow!"

"Yes! We'll do our best, right Eigetsu-kun?"

"Yes!"

Yuri smiled at them, "You two will do fine!" Her smile turned exponentially darker, "Just tell me if anyone gives you any trouble. And then leave it to me. You will need plausible deniability after all." She paused for a moment before her smile brightened, "Just kidding!"

Shuurei and Eigetsu looked confused while the men sweatdropped and thought, 'That is one scary woman.'

Then, someone changed the subject and they all enjoyed the rest of the meal before going their separate ways.

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It had been half a month since Shuurei and Eigetsu had started work, and Yuri was worried about them. They worked so hard while at the courts that if they even bothered to make it home, they were too tired to do anything but eat, go sleep for a few hours, and then leave again. Not to mention, Eigetsu received a message from his home town that he had sent his work money to. None of the money that Eigetsu sent had arrived, and he was worried about it.

She would heal small bruises that they would 'accidentally' gained, but Yuri left it at that knowing that they wanted to prove themselves.

Some days she would do like Seiran and look for random jobs, other days she would stay at home and clean up the house and yard as well as working out, and yet other days she would go to visit Kochou, but the other woman seemed off kilter.

It was almost as though she was anxious, and expecting something to happen. Yuri tried to talk to her about it, but Kochou would avoid answering and change the subject.

Something was going on, and Yuri wanted to know what it was.

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Shouka went out of town a few days ago for his work, so Seiran and Yuri were left to their own devices.

One night, Shuurei was feeling worried and useless when Shuurei and Eigetsu once again didn't come back. Seiran and Yuri were sitting out in the back garden when she turned to Seiran, "Do you want to spar? Or go for a walk? Something?"

He looked at her in surprise, "What brought this on?"

Yuri looked up and gave a frustrated sigh, "I just feel useless! I know that Shuurei and Eigetsu are having a hard time, just like I know that they have to get through this on their own! The most I can do is heal some bumps and bruises, but I feel like that's not enough!" She looked back at him, "Am I being stupid?"

He smiled softly at her and took her hand in his, "No, you're not. I feel the same way, except I can't even heal those bumps and bruises. Every time I see Ojou-san exhausted and hurt, I remember how not too long ago I was able to protect her from things that would cause that. Now... now she doesn't need me." His depressed tone shocked her out of her own funk.

Yuri squeezed his hand, "That's not true. She just needs you in a different capacity. Me too, I guess. We can no longer be there to stop things from happening, but..."

He finished for her, "But we can help her get back up if she falls down. Otherwise we just support her from the shadows..."

Yuri had calmed down considerably from her agitated state. Seiran didn't indicate that he wanted his hand back so she was satisfied sitting there, holding it, for however long he would let her.

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Seiran looked down to notice that at some point, Yuri had moved closer and put her head on his shoulder. She was still holding his hand, even though she had fallen asleep. He chuckled quietly and got her to let go of his hand before putting it on her lap. He put one hand behind her shoulders and shifted her until that arm was supporting her. Then he put his other arms under her knees and picked her up slowly, so as not to wake her. He took her to her room and balanced her with one arm while pulling back the sheets on her bed before putting her down and covering her back up.

He looked at her for a moment before brushing the hair on her forehead to the side. He leaned down and kissed her forehead before whispering, "Goodnight, Shirayuri."

He stood back up and felt his face heat up. He quickly left and went to wander around the Palace, hoping to catch a glimpse of Shuurei and Eigetsu to put Yuri's worried to rest.

He did not intend to end up drinking with Kouyuu, Ryuuki, and Shuuei.

He was glad that he had that conversation with Yuri earlier though, for it seemed Ryuuki was feeling the same as him and Yuri. After comforting his younger brother, he took Ryuuki back to his room, as he had drank a little too much.

After dropping him off, Seiran went back home to his room, only realising once he laid down, that he hadn't even seen Shuurei or Eigetsu.

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When Yuri woke up the next morning, it was to find that Shouka had come back from his trip. They went into the kitchen and she made the tea so that Seiran could drink some without faking his enjoyment of it. They sat there talking about Shouka's trip until Seiran finally came in.

After pouring him a cup of the tea, Yuri took a sip of her own and sighed. "Shuurei didn't come back again last night."

Seiran attempted a light tone, "Yes, but that just means she has been working very hard!"

They left it at that and the three of them drank tea in silence for a few moments.

Shouka took another drink of his tea before looking at Yuri, "You have gotten a lot better at making tea, Yuri-chan. When you first came here, you had no idea what you were doing!"

Yuri laughed, "That's true. But it could have been worse right?"

Seiran groaned, knowing what was coming next. Shouka chuckled, "Oh yes, it could have been worse. When Seiran first started making tea, he poured the hot water directly on the tea leaves!"

Seiran hid his face behind his cup, "Would you please forget about such embarrassing things from the past?"

Yuri pat him on the cheek, "I hope he doesn't, I love hearing about things like this."

Seiran groaned again before looking at her, "Why don't you tell us something embarrassing from your past then?"

Yuri replied happily, "Sure!"

Shouka laughed at Seiran's shocked expression that soon turned to rapt attention.

Seiran looked at her expectantly. She giggled before trying to think of something good to tell.

"..." Yuri suddenly snapped her fingers, "I've got one! Alright, so it was my second year in school, which means that I was twelve. We had this teacher, who was an idiot, that came up with the oh so brilliant idea to charm dwarves to have wings and fly around on Valentine's Day, delivering singing valentines." At their confused looks she explained, "Valentine's Day is essentially a day where people deliver notes and candy to the person they like. Understand?"

They nodded and she continued, "Dwarves are essentially ugly little men... that have no singing talent. Anyways, so these dwarves would receive requests from people to deliver rhymes, but the catch was the dwarves would sing them to the person, it didn't matter if they were alone or not. So I was walking with my friends when I saw a one of them flying straight for me. I knew it would be a bad idea to let it sing to me in front of a large group of people so I tried to make a run for it. Unfortunately, the boy I told you all was my school rival tripped me and the dwarf sat on me to keep me from running.

"Let me just say, they may have been tiny but they weighed a lot. So, here I am with a dwarf on my back in the middle of a crowded hallway, and no matter how much I begged him not to, he sang the Valentine." She stopped suddenly and slowly took a drink of her tea.

She could tell the two of them were impatient to hear the rest so she continued, "It was from a boy that was a year younger than me. He was absolutely obssessed with me, even though he was a sweet boy. His name was Colin Creevey. The Valentine said,

"Her eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad,  
Her hair is a dark as a blackboard.  
She's truly divine,  
I wish she was mine,  
The heroine who conquered the Dark Lord."

Seiran winced in sympathy before he began to laugh, Shouka joining him. "See how embarrassing that was? Pouring water directly onto tea leaves isn't so bad now, is it?"

Seiran's laughter slowed to an occasional chuckle, "No, I guess it's not. Thanks for sharing."

"Anything to get a laugh out of you!" She had finished her tea, so she went to get ready for the day.

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She finished getting ready just as Seiran was getting ready to leave. She stopped him, "Where are you heading to today? I thought you didn't have any work..."

Seiran looked slightly sheepish, "I'm going to the Court to see how Ojou-san and Eigetsu-kun are doing."

Yuri's eyes sparkled with mischief. "I'm going too."

Seiran looked at her startled, "They won't let you in since they know Ojou-san is the only female Official right now."

Yuri cackled, "Don't worry about that. If you wait for me off to the side once you get in, I'll meet you in there."

Seiran sighed, "Fine, but if you get apprehended, I'm sending Ojou-san after you."

Yuri winced slightly, "How cruel Seiran. Anyways let's go!"

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Seiran was slightly shocked when Yuri had made it inside, but he knew better than to ask how she did it. After all her favorite saying was, 'Plausible Deniability.' They were looking for either Shuurei or Eigetsu, when they ran into none other than Ryuuki. Seiran knew that Ryuuki had taken it upon himself to guard the two officials, but he had forgotten to tell Yuri that.

Yuri spotted him and exclaimed, thankfully, quietly, "Ryuuki?! What are you doing dressed like that?"

Ryuuki whipped around, "Yuri?! I'm guarding Shuurei and Eigetsu-kun... ... Wait! How did you get in here?!?!" He was pointing at Yuri, whisper-yelling.

Yuri winked at him, "Witch's secret. If I told you, I would have to wipe your memory."

"What would be the point in you telling me then? And would you really do that?"

"Exactly! Glad you understand! And no, I suck at memory charms and would most likely make you forget who you are, best case scenario. Worst case, I could accidentally drive you insane... So, where are Shuurei and Eigetsu-kun at?"

Ryuuki decided not to comment about the blaise way she mention the possible side effects of the memory charm and pointed off to the side, "They are heading over there to eat lunch." He motioned for them to be quiet and the three of them made their way over to where they could now hear the two talking.

Seiran and Yuri stopped a little sooner than Ryuuki, mainly becuase it wouldn't do for someone to find Yuri inside the court. They hid behind a tree and just looked at Shuurei and Eigetsu, notcing how tired they looked. They both sighed when Shuurei caught Ryuuki watching them.

Shuurei pointed at him, "What are you doing?!"

"Guarding you."

Shuurei was in Ryuuki's face. "If we are talking about guarding, why can't Seiran do it?"

Ryuuki closed his eyes and sighed, "He can't."

"Why not?!"

"Because Seiran is just a Granary Guard. His position doesn't allow him to serve as a personal guard." They saw Ryuuki glance their way, "Even though I know he worries about you, there are things he can and cannot do."

Yuri saw Seiran tense and look down. She grabbed his shoulder in an effort to comfort him. she whispered softly, "Why don't we make it to where you can do something? We'll figure something out, alright? I want to be able to help too..." He smiled at her and reached up to grab her hand with one of his. They listened to Ryuuki again, still holding hands.

"This is the most dangerous time for you two. You have no rank or status and basically no support. If the two of you were to disappear, no one would look into it." Yuri tightened her grip on Seiran's hand, angered at the thought.

He tried to calm her down, "It's an extreme example, it won't happen. Plus that is why Ryuuki is here, he is trying to prevent anything from happening."

She looked at him with angry tears in her eyes, "If something like that ever happened to them, I would kill whoever was responsible."

He grasped her hand tightly, "I would help you."

She gave him a small smile. They peered back around the tree and noticed that the small group had left.

She sighed, "Let's go back home for today, we can come back tomorrow."

"Yeah."

They walked the way they came, still holding hands.

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When they finally found Shuurei the next day, they saw some men flinging mud at her. Seiran had to physically restrain Yuri before she went and attacked them.

After Shuurei was left alone to clean up the mess, they walked up to her, keeping an eye out for anyone coming. Once they got close, Shuurei looked up and saw them. Yuri leaned against one of the pillars while Seiran walked closer to Shuurei, who had by this point gotten up. He looked at her sadly.

"Seiran? Yuri-nee?"

"Ojou-s-"

"No. Go away." To say Yuri and Seiran were shocked would be an understatement. Shuurei looked at them and smiled. "When it comes to this, I can't rely on any help from others. Not you two, not Tou-san. This was my decision." Yuri looked down and clenched her fist as Shuurei continued, "I took this path out of my own desire, after all. No matter what happens, I can't rely on anyone else's help. I'm... really very happy. I've managed to realize a dream that I never imagined would come true. Up until now, I've always burdened you Seiran, and more recently Yuri-nee, with my complaints, and cried to you... but I won't this time. I can't let you spoil me, Seiran, Yuri-nee."

Seiran reached his hand out to put it on Shuurei's head, but she turned away, and he froze. Yuri walked up next to him. "Please go while I've got my eyes closed!"

Seiran put his hand back down and Yuri clasped it briefly in comfort and encouragement. He looked at her before looking back at Shuurei, "If you ever feel like you can't take anymore, please come to me, or Yuri-san."

Yuri blinked back her tears, "It's not just for your sake Shuurei, but for ours as well. You are our imouto, no matter where you go or how old you are..." She started to walk away and felt Seiran follow her.

They went back home in silence and automatically went to the back garden. Yuri put her face in her hands and wiped away the few tears that fell. "I know that we have only been close for around a year, but it still breaks my heart to see her struggle and not be able to do anything about it..."

Seiran put a hand on her shaking back in silent support. He didn't need to say anything, becuase he felt the same way.

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Shuurei and Eigetsu had come home last night, due to it being their day off today. They had eaten quickly and gone to bed, still exhausted even though the fourth place Examinee, Haku Hakumei, had been helping them with their work lately; so Seiran and Yuri didn't see them for very long.

They had decided to get up early this morning to train. They went to where the cave was and had a few spars before heading back. When they got there, Shuurei and Eigetsu were waiting for them. Shuurei told them that Kochou had asked for them to come visit, so they quickly changed and got ready before leaving. Yuri decided to treat Kochou to a surprise and dressed up in one of her new outfits that was similar to the one Kochou had given her. The only differences was where the other one was green and brown, this one was sky blue and silver, with black slippers.

She did however remember how oddly Kochou was acting last time Yuri went to visit, so she strapped two knives to her forearms as a precaution.

They said farewell to Shouka and promptly left.

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When they arrived at Kougaro, Kochou met them outside. Shuurei smiled up at her happily, "Kochou-nee-san!"

Kochou held her arms out to them invitingly, "Thank you for coming! It's been quite a while. Since you passed the National Exams right, Shuurei-chan? Yuri-chan I saw a little more recently, but not by much."

Yuri felt a shiver go down her spine and looked sideways towards Seiran to see that he looked as uneasy as she felt. They both spun around at the same time and Yuri felt anger surge through her. Some of Kochou's men had surrounded them. And it wasn't in a friendly manner.

Shuurei finally noticed what was going on; she looked at Kochou, understandably upset. "Kochou-nee-san?"

"Shuurei-chan, I hate to impose, but I'm going to need you to stay here for a little while. There's someone who has requested you do so. You don't have the authority to refuse. He's not someone that two officials who are unranked and lack a position, can oppose. Besides, you wouldn't want anything to happen to your father, would you?"

Yuri growled impressively, "That's low, Kochou-san. Why are you do-"

Shuurei interrupted her, "Very well."

Yuri and Seiran looked at her in shock. "Shuurei!" "Ojou-san!"

Shuurei turned to look at them and shook her head, telling us not to interfere.

Yuri grit her teeth, once again feeling useless. She noticed Eigetsu whisper to Seiran and hand him something, but her focus was already once again on Kochou.

Shuurei and Eigetsu walked forward. Yuri went to follow, but one of the men stopped her as Kochou spoke. "We only need these two to stay, you on the other hand are free to go." Yuri drew one of her daggers and went to attack the man who stopped her but Seiran's hand on her arm stopped her. She looked at him in confusion. He just shook his head and stared at her for a moment before turning back to Kochou. Kochou just stared back unblinkingly. "Go on! Hurry on home, will you?" The other men began to walk away. "Oh boy, you two look scary. But you can't do a thing about it. Although, Seiran-san, things might have been different if you were an officer with authority like Ran-sama." Yuri was now the one gripping Seiran's arm as he tensed up. Kochou turned to walk inside, casually throwing her last few words over her shoulder. "That's too bad." She stopped right before the entrance. "As you are now, you won't be able to protect those important to you."

Seiran stood there staring at where the woman had been before turning around. "Let's go for now." He began walking at a fast pace without looking back. Yuri ran after him.

"Seiran..."

"She's right. Right now I can't protect Shuurei, Shouka-sama, Ryuuki... or you."

Yuri stared at the back of his head as they walked. "... Thank you. I want to protect all of you too. We'll figure this out, okay?"

He just nodded and kept walking, but he did slow down so that they could walk side by side.

They walked in silence for a few minutes before Yuri asked a question. "Where are we going?"

She saw Seiran tighten his hand around whatever it was that Eigetsu had handed to him. "To send a letter." He held up what looked like a stamp.

"Is that what Eigetsu handed to you? What is it?"

He looked at it for a moment. "It's the Imperial Family's seal. Any letter stamped with it is given first priority in reaching the Emperor. If we write a letter about this and send it to Ryuuki, it will get there faster than any other letter. He'll know something is wrong when he sees my name on the letter with this stamp."

"Well then, let's get to it!"

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After they sent the letter to Ryuuki explaining what had happened Seiran and Yuri went into the Palace, although Yuri had to sneak in once again.

Yuri looked at him, "Now where are we going?"

"We're going where I can get the power to protect those I care about."

"What?"

"We are going to see Haku-daishogun, the leader of the Uuringun. The Uuringun is the Emperor's army. He shouldn't be surprised to see me, he has offered me a place in the Uuringun before... Although, I'm not sure how he will react to your presence."

They walked into a building where they found a man with spiky hair wearing a tiger skin over his shoulder. Yuri was slightly behind Seiran, so the man didn't notice her at first.

He looked a Seiran, "You! So you've finally come! Oh... I like your facial expression. So you've made your decision?"

"Haku-daishogun. There's something I would like you ask for."

The man, Haku, looked interested. "Sure. I'll hear your request. What is it?"

Seiran was silent for a moment before looking the man dead in the eyes. "A sword. I want the position, rank, and authority to wear a sword, to protect what's important to me!"

Yuri looked at him in awe. 'He is so adamant about it. So sure...' Yuri hardened her resolve. She stepped up beside him.

Haku finally looked at her. "A woman...?"

"Yuri-san!"

Yuri bowed to Haku, "I also, would like the power to protect those I love."

The man looked at her with interest. "What makes you think that even if I gave you a sword, that even if I allowed you to join the Uuringun, you could protect those people?"

Yuri stared at him without flinching. "How about you gather someone to fight me tomorrow, and I'll show you what I can do?" She looked outside. "I would say tonight, but we are in a hurry." She turned back to Haku. "Do not underestimate me because I am a woman. Ask Seiran."

Haku looked towards Seiran who had a sheepish expression on his face. "Out of all of the times we have sparred, she wins half of the time."

Haku raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Really? Hm... interesting... I think I like you woman. Show up here tomorrow evening and we'll see if what Seiran says is true."

Yuri gave him a bloodthirsty grin. "I can't wait."

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Once Seiran received his badge and became an official part of Uuringun, they took off running back to Kougaro. They met up with Ryuuki half way there, but didn't stop. The three of them ran inside, and found men that they didn't recognize, knocked unconscious with Kochou's men standing over them. Kochou's men smiled at them and pointed to where they figured Shuurei was.

Yuri to the other two, "I am guessing that there is more going on than I first assumed?"

Ryuuki nodded, "Kochou is doing this as a favor to Shuuei. We have been trying to root out a corrupt official, and with this we are one step closer."

They didn't speak again until they ran into the room that contained an apparently asleep Eigetsu, Kochou, and Shuurei.

Seiran and Ryuuki stopped in the doorway calling to Shuurei while Yuri ran straight to her. She just about hugged the poor girl to death before looking at Kochou. "I am so sorry that I doubted you. But, on the plus side, this just proved that you are a fantastic actress."

Kochou grinned at her. "It's part of the trade."

Yuri smiled, comfortable in the knowledge that Kochou had forgiven her.

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After they had all calmed down, Ryuuki explained what was going on. He told them about the official who had taken possession of the Sa family ring that was currently lost, and how he had been lining his pockets from what amounted to embezzlement. He told them that he had people looking for the ring because whomever had it, became head of the Sa Clan and they essentially had control of Sa Province.

"I am trying to prevent just anyone from taking over the Sa Clan. Hopefully, if nothing else, it will remain missing for a little while longer. After a year without an official Clan Head, the family essentially votes in a new head and they have a new ring made."

They were all quiet for a moment, thinking about everything they had been told.

Yuri spoke softly to herself. "That's where Eigetsu's stipend dissapeared to. Greedy bastard..."

Shuurei looked at Ryuuki, "So you used me to gather some evidence against him."

Ryuuki closed his eyes, "I'm sorry. I put you through a frightening experience as a result."

Shuurei wasn't upset. "No. It's all right. But what was the reason for keeping me here?"

Ryuuki looked at her. "There is an inquiry about the legitimacy of you passing the Imperial Exam being held tomorrow at noon."

"What?"

Yuri spoke up, "They are saying that she somehow cheated?"

Ryuuki nodded at Yuri before he continued with his explanation. "He doesn't like the idea of female Officials,"

Yuri huffed, "Sexist bastard."

"So, with him claiming that you illegally passed, he took the necessary steps to have an inquiry held about you. If you were to be held here until the inquiry started, he would use your failure to show as an admission of guilt."

Shuurei held her head up. "So I need to appear at the inquiry to show them what I am capable of! I'll do it."

Ryuuki gave her a quick smile before quickly turning serious again. "Anyways, I suggest that Seiran, Yuri, and Eigetsu stay here with you tonight." He looked at Kochou, "Your security is reliable, right?"

"Yes. Leave it to us."

Ryuuki turned back to Shuurei, "You will undoubtedly encounter resistance on your way to the inquiry tomorrow. However, as part of evidence gathering, I won't assign you a significant escort. I want you to come on your own power."

"But, physically I'm weak!"

"That's why Seiran will be with you. In his current position, Seiran doesn't have to hold back against anyone."

Yuri huffed, "Don't forget about me!"

Ryuuki looked at her, "You won't be able to legally do anything."

Yuri stared at him before singing, "Plausible deniability, Ryuuki!"

Ryuuki winced, "Right, I have no knowledge of you being with the group."

"Aww, you are a quick learner."

Ryuuki coughed before turning back to Shuurei as she asked a question. "What do you mean by Seiran not having to hold back?"

Ryuuki glanced at Seiran, "You'll find out soon enough."

"All right. By the way, there's something that Eigetsu and I have noticed..."

Ryuuki pulled out a stack of papers, "You mean this?"

"Why?!"

"It's well written... If you finish it by tomorrow, it will be compelling evidence of that person's corruption." He handed the papers to her.

"Ryuuki..."

"Seiran has one of the seals of the Imperial Family. Send the finished report using that. Any letter bearing the mark of that seal is given top priority to reach me." He noticed Shuurei staring at him with a look on her face. "What's wrong?"

She just shook her head. "Nothing. Noon tomorrow, right?"

"Yes."

"Ojou-san." They turned to look at Seiran. "I would like to go to the house to check on Shouka-sama, is that alright with you?"

"Yes, please do."

Kochou told them that she was going to put Eigetsu to bed.

Seiran brought their attention back to him. "Then, I'll be leaving now." He looked at Yuri. "Are you coming with me?"

"Yes. We'll be here to pick you up tomorrow, Shuurei."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! Another chapter up! So, Yuri is wantin to joing the Uuringun... SUPRISE!!! More fluff in this chapter as well. Not much exciting happened this time around, but next chapter has fights galore!
> 
> About 8500 words this time sans AN's.
> 
> I hope you liked it! Review to your (and my) heart's content!
> 
> ~GG


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own neither Harry Potter (and co.) nor the Saiunkoku Monogatari crew!
> 
> ONWARDS MY LOVELIES!!

When Yuri and Seiran got to the Kou Estate, it was to find Shouka sitting with his youngest brother, Kurou.

Shouka waved them into the room. "Ah, Seiran, you remember Kurou?"

"Yes. Hello Kurou-sama." Serian gave a small bow to the man who nodded back before looking at Yuri.

"Picked up another stray, Shouka-aniue?"

Yuri huffed, but Shouka answered, "Not so much a stray anymore. She has become part of my family. Kurou, this is Shirayuri, Yuri, this is my youngest brother, Kurou."

"Nice to meet you Kurou-san." Yuri looked to Shouka, "You know about the inquiry tomorrow?" Shouka nodded, "Well apparently, some corrupt politician is the one who started the rumor and he asked Kochou to keep her there until after the inquiry is over. Shuuei asked her to agree to it to give that man into a false sense of security. Shuurei and Eigetsu are there now, Seiran and I will go retrieve Shuurei and take her to the Palace in the morning." They said their goodnights and Seiran and Yuri left them to go get some sleep.

Yuri stopped Seiran before they went their separate ways, "Kochou suggested that we grab Shuurei's make up box and take it with us. She should wear it tomorrow." Seiran nodded his agreement.

"Good night Yuri-san."

"You can just call me Yuri you know..."

Seiran looked at her for a moment before smiling, "Very well then. Good night, Yuri."

She smiled back at him, "Good night, Seiran."

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#

They left early the next morning to make sure they could leave from Kougaro's with plenty of time to spare.

They found Shuurei and Eigetsu asleep with there head on a table covered with paperwork. The two teens were covered in ink. Yuri quietly shook Shuurei awake and led her over to a washbowl so that she could clean herself up.

She handed Shuurei a towel to dry herself with as Seiran walked up with the make up box. "Ojou-san." He set the box down on the table next to the washbowl. "Before we leave, we brought this for you to use." Shuurei looked between Seiran and her. "Kochou-san asked that we bring it back from the Estate."

Yuri spoke up, "We just saw her on our way in. She apologizd for not being able to be here, but she said she had somewhere to be."

Shuurei began to open the box as she talked aloud to no one in particular. "Kochou-nee-san gave this to me a while ago..." She pulled a drawer out and found a note. She read it and smiled. "Although Kochou-nee-san was thoughtful enough to give this to me, I couldn't bring myself to wear make up after the Imperial Exam. I thought that it wasn't necessary in the male-dominated world of politics."

Yuri put a hand on her shoulder. "But Shuurei, just because you wear make-up, it doesn't make you any less capable than a man... It just shows those men that a woman is just as capable as them. Wearing the make up shows them that you are proud of who you are."

"I know... I know that whether or not I wear make up, it doesn't change who I am. Of course its not possible for me to become a man."

"Why would you want to be one anyways?" Yuri glanced at Seiran, "No offence."

Seiran grinned at her with laughter in his eyes, "None taken."

Shuurei looked at them with humor before continuing. "I have no intention of becoming one anyways." She paused for a minute. "I'm going to wear make up today." Here she looked at them, "You two told me that I could come to you if I felt the need to cry... but I'm not going to."

Yuri smiled at her as Seiran responded. "Very well. In that case I," he looked at Yuri who pouted at him. "We, will support you so that you have no reason to cry."

Yuri hugged Shuurei and whispered in her ear, "But, woman to woman, I know that I occasionally feel the need to cry out my frustrations and pain... If you ever need to, I'll be there for you." She leaned back and spoke at a normal tone. "Plus, it would be our little secret!"

Shuurei laughed, "I'll keep that in mind Yuri-nee! You both always know what to say to me. It's always what I need to hear!"

Yuri laughed with her while Seiran just smiled. "Well you should finish getting ready!"

Seiran nodded his head, "Yes, we'll need to leave soon."

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#

Once Shuurei finished getting ready, the three of them set off. Seiran was walking in front of Shuurei, while Yuri was taking up the rear.

After about five minutes of walking, they came upon two men who were looking around them, as if searching for someone. As soon as they spotted Shuurei, they yelled out, "She's over here!" before charging them. Seiran and Yuri intercepted them before they could reach Shuurei.

Yuri ran up to one of the men and blocked his sword with hers. She swung her sword out to the side, throwing him off balance, before punching him on his cheek. He stumbled slightly, but quickly regained his balance. He swung his sword at her again. She bent over backwards to dodge it and allowed herself to fall on her back. The man didn't have the time to stop his swing, so his stomach was left wide open. She used both feet to kick him, knocking him down. He curled up holding his stomach, trying to catch his breath. Yuri got up and stood over him, "Do not mess with my imouto." She knelt down and punched him in the face, knocking him out.

She stood back and looked around to see Seiran finish with his opponent. They looked at Shuurei and she was about to say something when they heard a group of men yelling and heading their way.

Seiran grabbed Shuurei. "Time to run, Ojou-san."

The three of them took off running towards the palace, with the men right behind them.

Seiran and Yuri dropped back a few steps to act as a buffer between Shuurei and the men if necessary. Shuurei spoke as they continued to run. "Just as Ryuuki said. They don't plan on letting me go easily, do they?"

Seiran glanced back at the men before looking at Shuurei again. "Are you alright?"

Yuri couldn't see her face, but she was sure Shuurei was grinning, "They are sadly mistaken if they think this will stop me!"

They continued to run, not slowing even once they got to the busier part of town. Many people that Yuri recognized, stopped what they were doing, trying to figure out why the three of them were running. They dodged in and out of people, but the men following weren't slowed down in the least.

Seiran looked at Shuurei, "Ojou-san, let me take care of them while you and Yuri continue on!"

"Not here, it would cause problems for everyone!"

Yuri pouted, "Why do you get to have all the fun, Seiran?"

Seiran shot her an incredulous look. "Fun? Feeling a little blood thirst today, Yuri?"

Yuri huffed, "Of course! To think that I would let them touch Shuurei is pissing me off!"

They turned a sharp corner when Yuri heard a familiar voice, Ryuushin call out to them. "Shuurei-sensei!" But she knew that they couldn't stop. They kept running until they hit a dead end.

Yuri and Seiran turned around and put a hand their swords, making sure to keep Shuurei behind them. The group of men ran around the corner and smirked cruelly at them. They drew their swords.

Yuri looked at them, sizing them up, before turning to Seiran. "We can take them out, no problem. We won't even need to draw our swords."

Seiran nodded and spoke to Shuurei, "This will only take a moment."  
The two men in the front angrily yelled, "What was that?!" They ran towards them, Yuri and Seiran each taking out one of them, Yuri knocking hers out with a kick to the solar plexis, while Seiran took his out with a punch. More started coming at them and they repeatedly knocked them out. One man was left standing and looked like he was about to run when Seiran ran up to him and took him out with a punch.

He turned and looked at the two women behind him with a grin. Yuri grinned back, "Show off."

He just glanced at her. "We should go." And they began to run again. They turned the corner only to stop. There was another group of men in front of them.

Yuri looked at them before thinking about how long it would take to knock them all out. "We don't have enough time to deal with them."

Seiran looked around, "This way." He led them down another side alley. They ran into another group of men. Yuri turned to see that the ones they had left behind caught up to them.

"Oh joy." Yuri grabbed Shuurei and put her against the wall, standing in front of her protectively, while Seiran stood in front of them. Right as the men were about to charge, a clay pot came flying from above Yuri, knocking out the closest one. The three of them looked up.

Ryuushin was standing on the wall directly behind them. "Shuurei-sensei! Yuri-nee-san!"

"Ryuushin?!" gasped Shuurei. They heard the sound of carts coming towards them and looked to see the townspeople surrounding the men.

One of the townsmen spoke, "You have a lot of nerve, treating our Shuurei-jou-chan like this!"

Another spoke to Shuurei, "I'm sorry about how we've been treating you lately, Shuurei-chan..." Yuri was confused. 'How were they treating her?' "But officials are really important people, right? So, if you hung around us, we thought you'd be made fun of and end up being shamed because of us!"

Ryuushin yelled down to them, "Hurry up and go! You're in a hurry, right?"

"We'll take care of things here!"

Seiran looked sideways at Shuurei and Yuri, "Let's go."

They took off running between some of the carts, not looking back.

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#

The finally got to the Palace Gates only to have the guards stop them.

"Halt! This is not some place that people like you are allowed to enter. Turn around and leave!"

Shuurei clenched her fists, "But I'm an Official Initiate!"

The guard blankly looked at her, "Don't recognize you."

Both guards jumped when two daggers landed by their heads. They shakingly turned back to the trio to see Yuri with another dagger in her hand. She was playing with it while innocently smiling at them.

She spoke in a sweet voice. "I may not be allowed to kill you, but I am sure that I can incapacitate you with out causing your... immediate death." She dropped her smile and glared at them. "Open the damn gate." Seiran cracked his knuckles, showing his support of the idea.

Yuri had to give them kudos. They may have looked like they were about to piss themselves, but they didn't move. Yuri was about to attack them when the gate opened from within.

"H-hello, Heki-shinshi!" Yuri glared at the back of their heads. 'They changed their tune real quick.'

"Hakumei-kun." Shuurei looked at the boy. Yuri relaxed her stance and sheathed her dagger.

"I figured something like this would happen, so I came to meet you. I'm not like you, who is from a noble but poor family; lots of officials are soft on me. I'll take you, hurry." Hakumei noticed Yuri, "A woman?"

Yuri looked at him with a blank face, "Am I really? Just pretend you don't see me and we'll get along just fine."

Hakumei shrugged and turned around. They followed him, Yuri stopping briefly to retrieve her daggers that she threw earlier. She looked at the two guards. "Our play time was cut short. You better hope that if I see you again, I don't remember your faces." She then turned and caught up with the other three.

Hakumei and Shuurei talked as they ran, but Yuri just kept an eye out for anymore men that would try to stop them. Sure enough, a group of guards were standing in front of them. Seiran and Yuri moved in front of Hakumei and Shuurei, drawing their swords.

Seiran didn't look back at them when he spoke, "Heki-shinshi, how are you at fighting?"

"The Heki clan excell in the arts and literature. We haven't the slightest knowledge about fighting."

Yuri laughed, "In other words, you would suck in a fight."

Yuri looked to see Seiran glance back at the two initiates. When he looked at her, she nodded to him in encouragement, 'We can do this!'

One of the guards slowly walked towards them, chuckling. He got about two feet away when a staff came out of an open doorway, hitting him in the face. 'I know that staff!'

Sure enough, Yuri looked to where the staff came from, and lo and behold, Ensei stood there.

He turned to them, "Yo!"

Seiran and Shuurei spoke in unison. "Ensei!"

"It's been a while, Hime-san, Seiran. Oh and there's Yuri-chan!"

Yuri looked at him critically, noticing his face was hairy again. "What, Ensei, got too lazy to shave?"

Ensei gave her an injured look, "What, you still lack awareness of how attractive I am with my beard?"

Yuri went to respond when Seiran interrupted, "We need to hurry, It's almost noon."

They hurried to where the inquiry was being held.

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#

As they came to the building, they could hear the muffled laughter of a man. Ensei and Seiran flung open the doors and stood aside for Shuurei to enter.

"Kou Shuurei, reporting for the inquiry."

Ryuuki gazed at her. "Kou-shinshi. There are suspicions of impropriety involving your passing of the Imperial Exams. What do you wish to do?"

"I do no want to stop being and official, I have not yet accomplished anything."

"It is noon. As of this moment, we will hold the inquiry. We will hold an oral exam so there will be no suspicion of impropriety."

Shuurei bowed her head. "As you wish." 

Yuri and Hakumei were standing behind her, so when Shuurei moved to the middle of the room to take the Exam, everyone saw Yuri standing there and broke out into whispers.

"What is that woman doing here?"

"She's not an Official Initiate!"

Yuri coughed to get their attention. "Please, ignore me. I simply came with Kou-shinshi because I have a meeting with Haku-daishogun of the Uuringun after this."

That caused more mutterings as people wondered why she had a meeting with the leader of the Uuringun. Everyone that knew her personally was eyeing her with curious expressions, except for Seiran. He had been with her when she talked to Haku, after all.

Ryuuki spoke loudly, "She has stated what right she has to be here. Let us begin with the inquiry!"

She, Ensei, Seiran, and Hakumei stood along the back wall and settled in to listen to the exam.

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#

As the exam came to a close, Ryuuki asked one more question. "Why did you, as a woman, decide to become an Official?"

Shuurei smiled, "If you ask me why, 'as a woman', I have no answer for you. I came to do what I as myself can do. I would have taken the Exam, regardless of my gender. I want to be an official. I want to protect as much as I can with my own two hands. Those were my thoughts. That is why I took the National Exams!"

Ryuuki closed his eyes briefly before smiling at Shuurei softly. "Does anyone hold any objections with Kou-shinshi's results?"

A resounding 'no' came from all of the gathered officials.

"Very well. Kou-shinshi, this exam is over. All suspicions are now dropped. You are dismissed." He may have dismissed them, but his glance in Yuri's direction indicated that he wanted to know what was going on. Their group turned to leave, but before Yuri left, she nodded and winked in his direction, mouthing 'I'll see you later'. His nod was the last thing she saw before the doors closed behind her.

She turned away from them to see the entire group, minus Shuurei, looking at her. Everyone except Seiran had curiosity on their faces, he just looked amused. 'The jerk.' "Where did Shuurei go?"

"She said that she was going to go get Eigetsu-kun and then head home. She wants to let Shouka-sama and him know how it went." Seiran answered before the group fell quiet again.

Surprisingly, Hakumei was the one to break the sudden silence. "Why do you have a meeting with the head of Uuringun?" He realized that he spoke out loud and scoffed before looking away. "Not that I care."

"U-uh... w-well you see... I kind of... askedtojoinsothatIwouldhavethesameauthorityasSeiran."

They all blinked at her in shock. "What?"

"I asked to join so that I would have the same authority as Seiran. So that I will be able to protect those I love."

Ensei laughed. "Only you, Yuri-chan. He actually agreed? Why?"

Yuri looked to Seiran for help but he just stared at her with laughing eyes. "Yes, Yuri. Why did he agree?"

Yuri glowered at him. "Bastard." She sighed. "He hasn't agreed, per say. Not yet anyways."

Ensei raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"

She rubbed the back of her head. "This meeting is a test to see if he will allow me to join."

Ensei looked at her his eyebrow still up, "A test?"

She nodded. "I have to spar against a person of his choosing." She saw Ensei's excited look and sighed. "I am sure you all can watch, if you want."

Seiran nodded with a sigh of his own, "There is likely to be a crowd there anyways."

Ensei grinned, "I, for one, am going to watch. When will it be?"

Yuri looked at the setting sun. "As soon as I get there."

Ensei gaped, "Today?"

"Yup."

"Let's go then!"

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#

Seiran was right.

When they got to the Uuringun headquarters, Yuri was positive that the entirety of the crowd gathered was waiting to watch the fight. Granted, most, if not all, of them were expecting for her to be humiliated, but, that was besides the point. A fight was a fight, regardless.

Hakumei had decided that he didn't care either way, so he had left before they had come here. Yuri, Seiran, and Ensei walked up to where Haku was sitting.

He grinned at Yuri. "So you did come. I was wondering if you would change your mind."

She chuckled, "Not even a little bit, Haku-daishogun."

"Good." He nodded towards one of his men, who walked forward. "This is my best fighter out of the men here."

Seiran and Ensei went off to the side as the man stood in front of Yuri. She could tell he would be interesting to fight, there was no derision in his gaze at her being a woman. He was not underestimating her. 'Good.'

She bowed to the man, "My name is Kazeno Shirayuri."

She heard some of the men in the crowd laugh, "She's even got a soft name!"

"A flower!"

Her eye twitched in annoyance. She grabbed one of her daggers and threw it into the beam above the head of one of the men. She looked at him and smiled sweetly. "Please. Shut up."

She was happy to notice the man gulp in nervousness, many of the others doing the same. 'Good, they all stopped laughing; chauvinistic assholes.'

She looked back at her opponent when she heard him laugh. "Good throw Jou-chan. My name is Shinrei Akio. I hope that your close range fighting is as good as your throwing."

She grinned at him. "I'll let you determine that for yourself." They looked towards Haku.

He smirked, "Begin whenever you like. It will go until one of you forfeits or is unable to continue."

The two stepped about five feet away from each other before bowing. The stood back up and drew their swords. They eyed eachother warily.

Yuri, forever impatient, was the first to move. She darted towards Akio, slashing at his middle horizontally. He didn't block with his sword like she expected. He jumped back while simultaneously bringing his sword down. She used her momentum to dive between his legs and once she was behind him, she tried to spin kick his legs out from under him. He spun around and saw her legs in time to jump back once more.

Yuri quickly got back on her feet and regained her stance.

Akio gave her a genuine smile, "Not bad, Jou-chan."

She grinned at him. "Just wait. It gets better."

She charged at him again, this time swiping vertically, from bottom to top. He blocked with his sword and quickly grabbed her wrist with his free hand. He brought his sword towards her seemingly open side. He was shocked when she blocked it with yet another dagger.

"Geez Jou-chan, how many of those do you got?"

"Eh, enough."

She used the strong grip he had on her hand to bring both feet up to his chest and kicked. As she was propelled backwards, she used her dagger to nick his sword arm. She flipped in mid air and landed in a crouched position.

She saw him look at the wound in surprise. She smiled, "I scored first blood."

He looked at her and grinned, "So you did." He charged at her. He swung his sword towards her side. When she went to duck, his foot made contact with her shoulder. She rolled with the force of the hit before standing up and rolling her shoulder.

She threw her last two daggers at him, one after the other, but he dodged the first one and blocked the second with his sword. She ran at him again and they locked swords. He twirled his, causing her to lose her grip slightly, but it was enough. He flicked her sword out of her hand and held his to her throat. "Do you yeild?"

She looked down at the blade before looking back up at him and grinning. "Not a chance."

His eyes lit up with interest and then shock as she swung her foot up and kicked him in the arm, taking the sword away from her throat. She grabbed said the wrist of the sword arm and pulled until his back was to her front. She yanked his arm over her shoulder and flipped him onto his back. She pulled hard on his arm until his shoulder was off of the ground before putting one of her feet on his neck.

He looked at her in shock as she spoke. "Do you yield?"

He was silent for a moment before he started laughing. "I do. I yield."

She helped him up and retrieved her sword and daggers before looking around to see everyone in the room stunned into a shocked silence. Akio looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "I think you seriously surprised them, Jou-chan."

"Eh, whatever. They should learn not to underestimate someone based on gender or size."

"Well said, Jou-chan." Yuri was surprised that it was not Akio who used the term, but Haku. She looked at him in shock. He just looked at her, confused. "What? It's true."

She shook her head in amusement. "No not that. It's cause you called me Jou-chan." She saw him start to pout. "Not that it's a bad thing!"

He smirked at her, "Well, I think it fits. You are tiny after all." He looked at her standing next to Akio. She only came up to his chin and he was about average height wise.

Now Yuri pouted. "Shut up..."

That broke the stunned silence and everyone began to laugh.

After they calmed down, Yuri looked to Haku. "So...? Did I pass your little test?"

He just grinned before simply saying, "Welcome to Uuringun, Jou-chan."

She smiled at him. "Thanks Haku-san!" She retrieved her badge from him before speaking again. "I assume you are going to write a report to the Emperor about me joining?" He nodded to her. "Well, I'll deliver it!"

He eyed her curiously, "Why?"

"Well, I figured I could explain what is going on better than a letter."

He studied her before nodding. He wrote a short message and handed it to her. She waved at him and left with Seiran and Ensei in tow.

Yuri looked at the two men. "Well, let's go by his office. If he's still in the meeting, then..."

Ensei spoke up, "I have my own meeting with him tomorrow, you could come then."

She agreed and they went to his office. When they saw he wasn't there, they dropped off the letter before heading back home. Ensei separated from them after they left the palace, saying he had something to do but would see them tomorrow.

Seiran and Yuri were walking when Seiran spoke up. "You did very well."

Yuri smiled. "Yeah. I'm just glad that I can legally protect all of you now."

He looked at her, "You don't need to worry about protecting me..."

She stopped and looked him dead in the eye when he did the same. "I know you can protect yourself, so can I. But everyone needs someone guarding their back." She held her hands up and looked at them. "If I can protect you from a wound you would have otherwise received, that would make me happy. If I can help you protect those dear to us, that would make me happy." She clenched her her hands into fists, took a deep breath and released it harshly. "I lost so many that were dear to me... before. Either because I couldn't protect them, or because of a stupid decision I made." She closed her eyes. "I never want to feel that pain again; I can't. I want to do everything in my power to keep all of you alive..." Her eyes flew open when he grabbed her fists.

He was staring at her with a gentle look in his eyes. "I understand. But let me protect you too. You are just as important to m-, all of us." He pulled her into a hug and they stood there silently for a few minutes.

Yuri whispered a thank you before gently leaving his embrace. "Alright, now let's go home!"

And so they walked, not mentioning the blushes that covered both of their faces.

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The next morning found Yuri outside sharpening and cleaning her sword and daggers, as she had been too tired to do it after returning the night before. She was finishing up when Ensei came looking for her.

He leaned against a wooden pillar and coughed to get her attention. Yuri sheathed her weapons before looking at him. "Yes?"

"I am leaving for my meeting with the Emperor. Are you still coming with?"

"Yup!"

&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#&#

When they got to Ryuuki's office, there was already a crowd there. Kou Reishin, Ko Kijin, Kouyuu, Shuuei, Ryuuki of course, and two older men that Ensei informed her were two of the Grand Advisors to the Emperor; Sho Yosei, or Sho-Taiho, and Sou Shungai, or Sou-Taifu. Sou-Taifu was also a great military commander. Originally, there were three, but Sa Enjun died after trying to kill Ryuuki. Sa Enjun, or Sa-Taishi, had been the head of the Sa Clan, and the ring Ryuuki had told them about had gone missing after his death.

The group turned to look at where she and Ensei had just entered, and all of them looked at her with expressions ranging from shock to curiousity. Except for Kijin, Yuri had no idea what his expression was like.

Yuri just smiled at them and waved, "Er, hello! I have no idea what everyone else is doing here but I just came to speak to Emperor Ryuuki when he has a moment..." They continued to stare at here and she let loose a laugh. "I'll just sit over here until you need me!" She walked to the side of the room and sat in a chair that was there.

Everyone turned to look at Ryuuki who looked just as surprised by her presence as the rest of them. 'I wonder if he even bothered to read the note from Haku-Daishogun...'

Ryuuki just shook his head at all of them, "We will talk about why she is here later, for now let's get back to business." He looked at Ensei, "Is this the real Sa Family Head ring?" Shuuei walked forward and handed a golden ring to Ensei.

He looked at it for a moment before speaking. "It's very well made... So this is the ring that old man had made in a hurry and then hid it under his wig, huh?" Yuri looked at the ring from where she was and noticed that it had a unique symbol on the top of it. She couldn't see what it was from her distance though.

Shuuei crossed his arms in front of his chest and sighed. "So it's a counterfeit, after all."

None of the others seemed surprised at the revelation. Kouyuu spoke up. "Well we figured that it was anyways."

Ryuuki sighed. "So the ring that Sa Enjun lost still hasn't been found yet."

Yuri turned as Reishin began to talk. "Well we do have people out searching for it."

Ryuuki just sighed as he braced his head on his fists. "The question remains if the one Sa Enjun had was the real one or not..."

It was quiet for a moment as Yuri looked around an noticed a large pile of what looked to be documents and trinkets.

Ensei must have noticed the same thing because he whistled lowly before turning his attention back to Ryuuki. "Still, you've certainly managed to confiscate quite a lot."

Kouyuu responded instead of Ryuuki. "These are the things that Senior Secretary Sai intended to use as bribes."

"What's this?" Ensei picked up a scroll and opened it. At his amused expression, Yuri's curiousity overwhelmed her and she walked over to him to get a look. She saw a painting of a woman who looked like she could be related to one of the men she had seen the day that Shuurei had been pelted by the mud. In other words, she was large. Very large.

Shuuei leaned down to look at it as well. "That is Sai's daughter who's hand in marriage he offered to Kouyuu." Yuri examined the portrait and saw a ring on the woman's hand. Her eyes widened and she looked to where Ensei had placed the fake ring on Ryuuki's desk before looking back to the portrait.

"Well that was a waste of time..." Ensei looked at Kouyuu as he said this.

Kouyuu stood up to no doubt yell at Ensei but Yuri interrupted him, "Ensei!" Everyone looked at her. "Look at this!" She pointed to the ring in the portrait.

Ensei stood up in shock. "What?!"

Kijin, who had been silent up to this point, asked, "What is it?"

Ensei and Yuri smiled at each other before Ensei turned to portrait to where it was facing everyone else. He pointed at the ring in the picture and practically sang, "We found it!"

Everyone crowded around to see where he was pointing. Kouyuu spoke as he walked towards the door, "I'll send someone to retrieve it."

The rest of them waited in silence until he came back. Once he did, Ryuuki turned to look at her. "What are you doing here Yuri?"

Yuri sighed in exasperation. "Did you not read the note that I dropped off yesterday from Haku-Daishogun?"

Ryuuki looked at her, adorably confused. "What note?"

Ensei laughed as Yuri sighed once more. She looked at where they had left the note yesterday and found it still unopened. She picked it up and handed it to him. "This note."

Everyon with the exception of Yuri and Ensei looked on in curiosity as Ryuuki read the note silently... "EHH?!" He looked between her, the note, and an amused Ensei. "Is this true?"

Yuri and Ensei nodded as Shuuei asked what the rest of them were thinking. "What does it say?"

Ryuuki read the note out loud with a shocked expression, " 'Emperor Shi, I have recently welcomed Shi Seiran into the Uuringun as you know, what I didn't tell you was that another had asked to join as well. I had them fight against Shinrei Akio today to see if they were worthy of joining. After an intense battle, in which this person succeeded in making Shinrei forfeit, I am writing this note to inform you that the Uuringun welcome Kazeno Shirayuri into our ranks. Haku-Daishogun.' "

There was silence in the room as everyone looked at her in shock except for Ensei. He looked as though he found all of this amusing.

Yuri laughed at them, "Surprise!" Then she held out her Uuringun badge.

Ryuuki broke out of his stupor, "So this is the meeting you mentioned yesterday at Shuurei's hearing. Why didn't you tell me last night?"

Ensei answered for her. "We came by last night but you were still in some meetings so we just dropped off the note and I told Yuri-chan that she could come with me today."

Ryuuki nodded his head, "I understand."

Shuuei laughed. "How did you set this up?"

Yuri grinned, "Well..." She explained to them how when Seiran had gone to accept Haku's invitation, she asked to join as well. She told them of the following conversation and agreement that she would fight someone of his choosing the next day. "So after Shuurei's hearing, Ensei and Seiran went with me to my test. Haku-Daishogun introduced Akio, we fought, I won. That's about it."

Ensei laughed, "That's not all! Some of the other men were making derrogatory comments and Yuri-chan must have gotten fed up with it! The next thing we knew, one of the men had a knife sticking into the wall above his head!"

Yuri gave a cold yet polite smile, "I do not tolerate anyone making fun of the name that my parents gave me."

Every person there felt a shiver go down there backs. It was silent for a while as everyone was caught up in their own thoughts. Suddenly a knock came at the door and Yuri looked outside to find that it was getting dark.

Kouyuu walked back inside and closed the door. "The person I sent retrieved this from Senior Secretary Sai's estate." Kouyuu handed it to Ensei.

Ryuuki gave him a moment to examine it, "What do you think?"

"It's a very well made," he put the ring on the desk, "counterfeit." Yuri saw everyone deflate in dissapointment. "It was taken by his daughter and worn openly like this, but he didn't notice and even had a portrait made."

Yuri snorted, "What an idiot."

Ensei glanced at her with a grin before continuing. "The whole family is a real hoot."

Ryuuki stared at the counterfeit ring contemplatingly, "But, where is the real ring?"

Yuri saw all of them gain a serious look and let them stew for a moment before breaking the tension. "If the ring was found by someone who knew what it was, they would immediately attempt to take over the Sa Family right?" At Ryuuki's considering look and then nod she continued. "If that had happened someone would have heard about it right?" At the looks she received she let out an amused huff. "Are you telling me that all of you," She pointedly looked at each man, "believe that something this big would make it past your network of people you have working for you?" She snorted in amusement. "Maybe one or two of your networks wouldn't catch wind of something this important, but for none of you to have heard anything? Unbelievable."

Reishin looked at her with a curious expression, "What's your point?"

"Well, that means there are a few options here. One, someone found the ring and has no clue what it is and just kept it. Unlikely but possible. Two, someone found it, knows what it is, but is deciding to keep it hidden for now. This can be very bad, as that means that whoever found it is incredibly intellegent and careful to have not slipped up and accidently mentioned it to someone. That also means that if this is what happened, they might have no intention of ever letting it be found by anyone else, or more likely, they will give it to someone of their own choosing. Three, no one has found it and it will most likely remain lost until well after a new head is selected and a new ring made." She looked around for a moment. "Out of those three options, you better hope it isn't the second one."

Ryuuki looked at her seriously, "Why?"

Yuri looked at him with just as serious an expression. "Because, at this point it is known that you are looking for the ring. If it has been found by someone and they haven't brought it to your attention, then whoever they plan on giving the ring to, if that is what they are doing, is someone you would not choose."

They all thought about the results that could bring before Reishin spoke. "I will have the search continued."

Yuri hummed, "I would have them look in the market as well. You never know, it could have been found by someone and then sold if they thought it was just a trinket."

He just nodded. Ensei sighed heavily, "This was a close call though." Everyone turned their attention to him. "If those rings had fallen into the hands of the Sa Family, everyone would have believed they were real."

Ryuuki sighed heavily, "Speaking of, how are things in Sa Province right now?"

"Since Enjun-Sama's death, the entire Sa Family has fallen into chaos with everyone fighting to become the next Head." He paused. "That ring, which signifies leadership of the Sa Family; they are all searching for it desperately. It has been almost a year since Enjun-Sama's death."

Reishin continued where Ensei left off. "In cases where a full year has passed and the Head of Family's ring still can not be found, the Family will be able to elect a new head and have a new ring made."

Ensei nodded to him, "If they nominate some shady character as head of the family, it would be the worst thing that could happen. The people will be the ones to suffer in the end. In Sa Province, the Sa Family holds absolute power. If there was anyone that could stand against them, it would be a legitimate Governor with the Emperor's support."

Ryuuki looked down in thought before raising his head and meeting Ensei's stare straight on. "I understand." He close his eyes for a second before looking at everyone in the room. "First, I would like to be sure that you will all approve of any candidate that I personally select to become the Governor of Sa Province. Will any of you object?" No one said a word and he smile in relief. "I plan on sending Kou Shuurei and To Eigetsu as Co-Governors to Sa-"

"WHAT?!" They all looked at Yuri who had a look of absolute rage on her face. "You plan to send them in to what amounts as a war zone?!" Before anyone could object she was in Ryuuki's face. Ensei walked up to her slowly so as not to incite her wrath any further. "Listen here Ryuuki, you had better be assigning them a damn good escort!"

They all blinked at her in shock, but Ryuuki was the only one brave enough to speak. "You approve of them becoming the Governors?"

Yuri's anger essentially drained out of her as she took a deep breath. "...If that is what you think best then yes. I have no doubt they will do a fantastic job. I am just worried about them and can't help think that this is too much, too soon. Both because they have just now become Officials, and because right off the bat you are assigning not only a 13 year old boy, but the first woman official. I hate to say this, but they are the two easiest targets I can think of to take out of the picture." She gave him a hard stare. "That is why they had better have a damn good set of people guarding them. Or else."

Ryuuki involuntarily shivered before blurting out, "I plan on assigning Seiran to go! And you now that you can officially be assigned." At her look of shock and gratitude he let out a calming breath. "And of course Ensei will be going with you as well."

All of those who did not know her personally were shocked when Yuri gave Ryuuki a hug before patting him on the head. "Thank you Ryuuki! If that's all that is going to be talked about, I'll be on my way! Oh and I'll give Seiran a head's up and tell him not to mention anything to Shuurei or Eigetsu! Ja ne!"

She ran out of the room before anyone could say anything.

Ensei started laughing with Shuuei joining in while the rest of them stood there dumbfounded.

Ryuuki looked around with a bewildered look on his face. "What just happened?"

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Yuri made it back home after Shuurei had already fallen asleep. She pulled the blanket back up to Shuurei's shoulders before leaving and quietly closing the door. She ran into Shouka and informed him of Ryuuki's plan before leaving him to his own thoughts.

She went outside and found Seiran practicing with his sword. She stood there and watched him for a few moments and couldn't help but think on how attractive he was. He had taken his shirt off to keep cool and Yuri took in the sight that he made with his glistening skin and muscles. Even the numerous scars did not detract from his good looks, they only enhanced them in her opinion. She was so lost in her own thoughts that she did not realise he had stopped with his exercises and was looking at her as well.

Seiran took in the beauty that was Yuri and once again was caught on her eyes. Her figure was also obvious thanks to her having worn her 'work out' clothing which consisted of tight fitting men's clothing. He blushed at his thoughts and cleared his throat to get Yuri's attention.

Yuri jumped when she heard a throat being cleared and between Seiran's blushing face and being caught staring at him, she blushed as well.

She gave a little cough and stared at a spot over his left shoulder, "U-um..." As she stuttered her blush grew worse. Then she remembered what she came to tell him and looked at him with a serious expression, a slight red tint still visible onher cheeks. "I came to tell you that Ryuuki has decided to name Shuurei and Eigetsu as Co-Governors of Sa Province." She held up her hand as he went to speak. "I know, I may have blown up at him when I was told." Seiran gave a laugh and then looked at her to continue with her news. "He is going to assign you and me as their escort back not to mention that Ensei will be traveling with us as well."

Seiran looked more at ease with that news but she could tell he was still upset. He looked her in the eyes, "Shuurei will be ecstatic. So will Eigetsu." Yuri nodded her head and walked up to Seiran before hugging him around the waist.

"I'm scared for them Seiran. They won't realize what it will be like. True, they face hardships here in the palace, but there were no outright attempts at their life." She tightened her hold around him, but slightly relaxed as she felt him wrap his arms around her. "Plus even though we will be there, there will only be the three of us to defend them! I don't like it."

Seiran propped his chin on the top of her head and held her closer. "We will do everything we can to keep them safe. That's all we can do."

"I know... Thank you Seiran." Yuri sighed as she regretfully pulled back from Seiran. She stopped with their arms still around eachother and looked up at the man that she was beginning to fall in love with. She leaned up onto her toes and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek. "Good night."

She walked off, not seeing the awestruck look on Seiran's face or his hand that was laying where she had kissed him. Not hearing the whispered, "Goodnight... My Yuri."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this is still pretty canon, same situations, a little extra dialogue here and there, cut out scenes that I don't find relevant to my story!
> 
> About 7500 words without the ANs, so not too shabby!
> 
> I hope to hear from all of you in a review! Let me know how I am doing!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, I tried to bribe/train my parents' dog to go and steal the rights to both HP and SM... she just looked at me like I was insane. Then she snatched the treat I was trying to bribe her with and ran off... I felt so betrayed and used!!
> 
> That dog is spiteful.
> 
> Any-who, read on my little ducklings, read on!

The next few days after Shuurei's oral exam and Yuri's induction into the Uuringun were calm and warmly welcomed by the Kou household, which now included Ro Ensei, after getting permission to stay again. He was waiting until after the assignments were given before heading back to Sa Province. Unknown to Shuurei and Eigetsu, he was specifically waiting for the two of them to be assigned as Co-Governors of Sa Province.

There were still several days until those who passed the imperial exam would be given their official jobs and duties, so the entire household was just spending time together, be it making meals or cleaning. Yuri was standing next to Shuurei kneading some dough while Shuurei was rolling said dough out when she was done kneading it. Eigetsu, Seiran, and Ensei were helping prepare some of the other ingredients for the dinner meal while Shouka was working at the Imperial Library.

As they were working they were all either participating in small talk or silently enjoying the atmosphere they were surrounded in. Yuri thought back on when Eigetsu found out just exactly who Ensei was. Ensei had bragged about how he had taken the Provincial exams and had barely passed. It was hilarious watching Shuurei and Eigetsu's reactions to that considering they themselves were two of the three highest scorers of the Imperial Exam.

Yuri giggled quietly to herself just thinking about what their facial expressions had been. They had looked so blank after Ensei had proudly announced that he had scored second to last. Seiran's actions had been even funnier than the twosomes expressions. He had started dragging Ensei out of the door mumbling about dumping the 'no good free-loader' somewhere where he wouldn't be bothering them anymore. Yuri had laughed at the scene for a few moments before being able to control herself again. The two men had begun arguing about how telling others that the ex-Governor of Sa Province could barely pass the Provincial exams was not only disconcerting, but really down right depressing.

The lightheartedness that the group reveled in was not meant to last forever though. Soon after their light-hearted argument that day, Ensei mentioned that he was going to bring someone by to visit Shuurei later on. Someone named 'Kourin'. Based on Shuurei's reaction, Yuri would have thought that was a good thing, but she caught sight of Seiran's face which had become morbidly serious. Even Ensei's face had lost it's humor. She decided to let it go at that moment and resolved to ask Seiran about it later.

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On the morning of the Assignment Day, Yuri knocked gently on Shuurei's door and entered to make sure her little sister was ready for the day. When she walked in, it was to the sight of Shuurei in her white Official Robes with her hair loose, standing in front of her mirror. Her makeup box from Kochou was sitting on the table in front of her, unopened.

Yuri quietly shut the door behind her and walked up behind Shuurei, who then noticed her in the reflection of the mirror.

Yuri picked up a comb and began running it through Shuurei's hair. "You know, I think that you have to be one fo the bravest women I have ever known." Shuurei looked at her in the mirror with an incredulous expression on her face.

Shuurei gave a doubting look, "What? But you yourself are so brave, I could never do what you do, being able to fight, not to mention what you have been through!"

Yuri laughed gently as she continued to comb out the younger woman's hair, "Bravery comes in all different types. Just because I can fight doesn't mean I am more brave than you. You are taking on a whole society to do what you believe in. I am comfortable with what I do because in the society I grew up in, a woman was just as likely to be in a position of power as a man was. There was no huge gender gap like there is here. You grew up with these gender roles, yet you are defying them to try to make this country a better place! Believe in yourself and others will believe in you too." Yuri smiled at Shuurei who gave a smile in response. "Now let's do something with your hair!"

Shuurei picked up a square of pink cloth, "I was going to just put my hair back with this and leave two pieces of it framing my face..."

Yuri paused in the combing to wave her hand in dismissal, "No, I think we should do something more feminine than just a pink cloth! Remember to embrace the fact that you are a woman, there is no need to dress down to fit in with the others!" Yuri looked at Shuurei's hair thoughtfully before giving a decisive nod. Shuurei looked at her blankly, unsure of whether or not this was a good idea. Seeing her face, Yuri laughed. "Trust me Imouto! I will never lead you astray, especially not in something like this!"

Shuurei gave a hesitant nod and Yuri beamed at her before getting to work on her hair. She combed all of Shuurei's hair straight back before separating her bangs and combing those forward from the rest of the hair. She contemplated the rest of the hair that was still combed back before nodding decisively and splitting it into two halves, top and bottom. She took the bottom part and put it over Shuurei's shoulder to get it out of her way before she began to braid the top part tightly. Once she reached the end of the braid, she began to wind it into a bun in the dead center of the back of Shuurei's hair. She tucked to tail end of the braid under the bun to hold it temporarily. She brought the hair that was over Shuurei's shoulder and brushed it out before bringing three small sections forward on either side of her head and braiding them loosely. Once she reached the end of the braids, she lightly draped them up to the bun before winding the excess of the braids around said bun, tucking the ends under. Finally she took the pink cloth, folded into a strip, and tied it around the bun to keep it secure.

Yuri fanned out the rest of the loose hair and rearranged Shuurei's bangs before giving a pleased nod. "There! I'm finished! See Shuurei, just because you are a woman doesn't mean you have to do your hair extravagantly, just adding a feminine touch makes a world of difference!"

Shuurei was staring at her reflection in shock, amazed at how simple, yet feminine the style was. She turned around and fiercely hugged Yuri with a joyful laugh. "Thank you Yuri-nee-chan! I love it!"

Yuri hugged the younger woman back before gently turning her back towards the mirror. "Now it is time for your makeup... do you want to do it yourself, or do you want me to do it?"

Shuurei considered her reflection before smiling gently, "I'll do it Nee-chan... but will you stay with me?"

"Of course!"

Yuri watched as Shuurei opened the box and considered the contents before pulling out some blood red lip paint and black kohl.

Once she applied the light amount of makeup, she looked at Yuri nervously. Yuri hugged her and spoke into her ear, "You look beautiful Shuurei. Often, less is more. You are naturally pretty so you do not need a lot of makeup. That would just cover what you already have. Well done!"

She released Shuurei and smiled brightly at her, "Are you ready to go wow the men?"

"Yes!"

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The men were indeed shocked at how feminine Shuurei looked, especially since it had seemed like she was trying to blend in, but they all told her how nice she looked. Once it was time to leave, Seiran, Ensei, Shuurei, Eigetsu, and Yuri all left together. Once they got to the palace, Shuurei and Eigetsu went to join the other Shinshi while Ensei, Seiran and Yuri stood in the back behind the crowd of people, remaining unnoticed by most.

Seiran and Ensei were talking quietly to each other, but Yuri was lost in her thoughts. After kissing Seiran on his cheek about a week back, things had gotten slightly awkward between the two of them. She knew why it was awkward on her part, she was embarrassed after kissing him, even if it was only on the cheek, but she didn't know what was causing Seiran to be so awkward when it was just the two of them. Did her find it weird that she kissed him? Was he disgusted? Maybe Vernon was right and nobody could love a freak like her...

Yuri subconsciously flinched as she heard his voice in her head. She shook her head roughly to rid herself of those thoughts and decided not to think on it for now. After all, if Seiran didn't return her feelings, it wouldn't be the end of her life.

A little voice that sounded like him whispered in the back of her mind. 'It may not be the end of your life, but it would be the beginning of your own personal hell...'

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Ensei once again caught Seiran sneaking a glance at Yuri, who was staring into space with a blank face, and had to stifle a laugh.

He spoke quietly so as to avoid being heard by Yuri, although he didn't think she would hear him if he started yelling. "When are you going to tell her that you love her?"

Seiran's head whipped back around so fast that Ensei was sure he heard something crack. "What? I don't know what you are talking about."

Ensei snorted, "Of course not. I guess you look at every girl you know with that lovesick expression on your face, right?"

Seiran grimaced, "Is it that obvious?"

A laugh, "Only to those that know you. So why are you glancing at her like she's going to break your heart?"

Seiran unconsciously glanced at Yuri again before locking eyes with Ensei. "I don't know how she feels. She kissed me on the cheek the other day, but that could been like a sibling showing affection. Or just a friendly gesture. Why would she love someone like me, I am just a retainer that was taken in by a kind family when I was at the darkest point in my life. She is so bright and happy, why would she want to be with someone like me when she could easily have someone like Ran-Shogun."

Once again Ensei had to hold in a laugh at how sappy his friend was being. "Woo, you do have it bad Seiran. I have never heard you talk like this before."

"Did you even hear a word I just said?!"

"Of course. I just decided to ignore it because everything that came out of your mouth was idiocy."

"Wha-"

"Look, I'll be honest with you. If she doesn't at the very least strongly like you, I'll shave myself bald and eat my hair. Do you know how many times I have caught her gazing at you? And I'm not even here all that often! I doubt that she only does it when I'm here, so she must be doing so quite often. As for the kiss on the cheek, don't be an idiot and make it less than it was. Don't exaggerate it into a declaration of love or anything, but you and I both know that Yuri is not one that is overly affectionate, at least physically. Except for you and occasionally Shuurei, she goes for the least amount of physical contact possible without seeming rude or cold."

Seiran looked more hopeful, but Ensei could still see lingering doubt in his eyes. "Just watch her around you versus the rest of us, you will see what I mean." There was a hush spreading through the crowd in front of them, letting them know that Ryuuki was entering.

Seiran looked to Yuri to make sure she was paying attention when he saw her face filled with pain before going blank. She turned her head to look at him and blushed when she saw he was looking at her as well. Seiran gave a small smile that grew in size when Yuri smiled back.

They both turned to pay attention to Ryuuki as he began talking. Once he began calling the names of the Shinshi, their thoughts wandered until they heard Shuurei and Eigetsu's names called.

"-To-Shinshi, and Kou-Shinshi, come forth." There was muted muttering at the surprising fact that two Shinshi were called upon at the same time. Especially since those two were the only two of the top three that showed up. Yuri noticed how nervous Shuurei and Eigetsu looked as the knelt before Ryuuki and couldn't help but grin at what was coming next. She was all for causing a well-deserved scene. "This year's Jougen*, To Eigetsu, and Tanka*, Kou Shuurei, the two of you are hereby appointed as Co-governors of Sa Province."

The uproar was immediate as some of the more forward Court Officials began complaining about the twosome's appointment as Governors. Ryuuki tried to calmly explain his reasoning as to why he chose the two of them, but when the Officials would not stop protesting, his restraint snapped, "Then will you agree to become Governor of Sa Province?" All talking stopped. After all, who would volunteer to walk to their deaths? "Well then, are there any here who believe themselves capable of governing Sa Province?" Not a sound was heard. "There was also many debates when it came to choosing the previous Governor of Sa Province. If you will remember, the only one willing to become the Governor was a nameless young man with no government background, who hadn't passed the Imperial Exam... He hadn't even taking the Provincial Exam! And yet, he still managed to do an excellent job carrying out his duties as Governor."

One of the many complaining Officials spoke up then, "That's because he had that outstanding Official Tei by his side, helping him!"

Ryuuki just calmly smiled, "That certainly played a large part in it. That is why capable assistants will be assigned this time as well." He raised his voice with a more official tone rather than the somewhat gentle one he had just been using, "Since two new officials have been appointed, two assistants will also be appointed! One of them will be the current Governor's Assistant, Official Tei, the other will be," Ryuuki paused to glance a Ensei and raise his hand in a beckoning motion, "Ro Ensei! Come forth!"

Ensei grinned at Seiran and Yuri before adopting a blank face and walking to the front towards Ryuuki. Yuri had to hold back a giggle when she saw the shocked faces of Eigetsu and Shuurei.

She looked at Seiran to see amusement shining in his eyes. She blushed at quickly turned back to pay attention to what Ryuuki was saying.

"As the former Governor of Sa Province, you will no doubt guide these two well. You will join them on their journey to Sa Province."

Ensei clasped his hands together in front of his face and bowed his head, "I respectfully accept this appointment."

"Furthermore, in light of the unique situation in Sa Province, I will be especially assigning two military officers for protection." Yuri and Seiran began to quietly make their way forward. "Shi Seiran. Kazeno Shirayuri. Come forward." A low mumbling began again when they saw Yuri making her way forward.

They both stopped by Ensei and waited for Ryuuki to speak again, ignoring the muttering going through the crowd.

"I hereby appoint the two of you as their protective officers." Shuurei's jaw dropped in shock. "As such, I grant both of you authority greater than that of a Provincial General! Go with them to Sa Province and assist these newly appointed governors." Haku-Daishogun and another man that Yuri didn't recognize walked up to either side of Ryuuki. Haku-Daishogun was carrying two swords while the other man was only carrying one. The swords that Haku-Daishogun were carrying were complete opposite. One had a white hilt, but was resting in a black sheath, while the other had a black hilt and was resting in a white sheath. The sword that the unknown man was carrying a slimmer black sword in a dark green sheath. Yuri could make out that a design was carved in the guard of the sword, but she couldn't tell what it was due to the distance.

Ryuuki held his hand towards Haku-Daishogun, "Kanshou and Bakuya. These twin swords once belonged to my beloved Seien-Aniue."

Yuri felt her brow furrow in confusion, 'Didn't Shuurei tell me that Prince Seien, his mother, and his grandfather had been banished for treason? Why does Ryuuki speak of him with such warmth?'

"-though both swords were presented to him, Seien-Aniue gave Bakuya to me." Ryuuki lifted the white-sheathed sword from Haku-Daishougun's arms. "Although I was too small to carry it at the time, Bakuya was my treasure." Ryuuki paused long enough to grab the black-sheathed sword, Kanshou, and held one in each hand. "And I'm also giving the other sword, Kanshou, which Seien-Aniue wore, to you. I feel that it is fitting that you should have them."

Seiran seemed almost frozen for a second, staring at Ryuuki, before he walked forward and knelt before him. "I accept with the utmost respect." He held his hands up and Ryuuki placed both Kanshou in Seiran's hands, before handing Bakuya back to Haku-Daishogun.

Seiran stood up and stood off to the side.

Ryuuki looked at Yuri and held out his hand towards the unknown man, silently demanding the sword to be handed over. "Kazeno Shirayuri. You have shown courage, daring, and diversity in your want to protect those you care for. You bravely approached Haku-Daishogun, not knowing how it would end for you. You managed to impress him and he accepted you into the Uuringun, that is not easy to accomplish. From what I was told of the fight, you were also very resourceful. Even once you were disarmed, you were able to take down one of Uuringun's strongest fighters bare-handed. For these reasons, I had a King Protea flower put on the guard of your new sword. In addition to that, for the strength of character, honor, and faithfulness you have showed, I also had a gladiolus added on. May this sword serve you well in protecting the newly appointed Governors. Come forward."

Yuri walked up to Ryuuki before kneeling, bowing her head, and holding her hands out. "I accept with the utmost respect, and will do my best to do this gift justice." When she felt the sword in her hands, she stood up and joined Seiran once more.

Ryuuki turned to Shuurei and Eigetsu once more. "Lastly, there is something I wish to ask To-Shinshi and Kou-Shinshi... As you know, Sa Province is dangerous place at this time. While I intend to do everything in my power to ensure your safety, I cannot guarantee it. Knowing this, do you still wish to go to Sa Pronvince and serve as the governors?"

"I do!!" Yuri blinked in shock at the resounding voice of the two speaking as one. she hid her laugh behind a cough, though judging by the looks Seiran and Ensei sent her, she didn't hide it very well.

Shuurei and Eigetsu looked at each other with amusement before looking back at Ryuuki and properly accepting. The both held their clasped hands in front of their faces and bowed their heads, once again speaking in unison. "We accept with the utmost respect."

Ryuuki gave them a gentle look before waving another unknown man forward. "Well then, I entrust these; the Jade Pendant and Seal of Sa Province, to you. As it would be inappropriate to have duplicates made, you will carry one of the items each." He took them from the man and handed them over. "This means that together the two of you will govern." Ryuuki paused to give them a moment to collect themselves. "There is one more thing I would like to give the two of you." Yet another man came forward. Ryuuki took two black boxes and held one out to each Shuurei and Eigetsu. "I present to you these flowers."

The two teens took the boxes and opened them. Shuurei pulled out a hairpin while Eigetsu pulled out some sort of decorative piece. They looked at them closely and Shuurei spoke quietly. "They are flower buds..."

Ryuuki nodded, "They carry the meaning of limitless possibility and hope. I am looking forward to seeing what kind of flower both of you will bloom into in the future. When these buds fully bloom, I will present you with flowers that have completely blossomed."

Shuurei and Eigetsu bowed once more before backing off to the side.

______________________________________________________________________________

By the time the ceremony was over, it was nighttime. Shuurei and Eigetsu decided to stay one last time in their rooms they had been given at the Palace while Ensei, Yuri, and Seiran decided to go back to the Kou Residence. After a quick promise to bring the two teens some of their clothes to wear tomorrow as well as to pack their bags for the trip ahead, they were heading back. Ensei wandered off saying that he wasn't quite ready for sleep yet, leaving Seiran and Yuri to walk in a comfortable, yet slightly awkward silence.

They were imagining ways to clear the awkwardness between them, yet neither was quite ready to take the plunge into talking of their feelings. Finally, even though Yuri couldn't bring herself to say anything, she reached out and grabbed Seiran's hand. Half expecting him to throw her hand aside, due to her earlier thoughts and memories, she couldn't help but smile brightly when he squeezed her hand tightly, yet gently at the same time. When he didn't release her hand, she squeezed back. The awkwardness was all but nonexistent the rest of the way home.

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The morning sun was shining intensely, waking Yuri up almost immediately. She got ready quickly, strapping her new sword, that she had yet to name, around her waist. She packed her old sword to take with them, just in case, as well as her daggers. She had two of her daggers on her, both strapped to her thighs with a hidden part in her pants so that she could reach them easily. She threw her hair up into a ponytail, idly noting that her hair now reached the top of her bottom when put up. She made a mental not to trim it later as she grabbed Shuurei and her's bags, putting them by the front entrance for later.

She went to make tea and found Shouka already in the kitchen sipping from his own cup. Knowing that Seiran would be with them soon, she finished off the rest of the tea before making more.

The time that they spent just sitting quietly before leaving was calming for Yuri who was beginning to feel a sense of dread about this trip. She shook the feelings off and decided that what will happen, will happen, and nothing would change that. All too soon, the three of them made their way to the Palace. Ensei joined them along the way, and due to a silent agreement, no one asked where he had been.

Once they entered the Palace gates, Shouka split off to go wait with the rest of the Officials that were sending them off. Ensei, Seiran, and Yuri walked together a while longer until Yuri handed them Eigetsu's change of clothes and sent them off with a 'See you later' and a 'Freshen up while you're there, Ensei'.

Once she made it to Shuurei's room, she went in to find Shuurei already awake. Then Yuri noticed her troubled face.

She dropped Shuurei's things on a chair and wandered over to her side. After a moment of silence, Yuri broke the silence. "What's wrong, Shuurei?"

Shuurei sighed, "It's Ryuuki... When I went for that walk last night, he found me and we talked for a while..."

Yuri waited for her to continue, but as the silence stretched, she hummed. "Talked, huh? About what, might I ask. A regular talk doesn't normally cause someone to be so troubled the morning after it happened."

"He said he loves me. Again."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"I told him that I can't be his consort. That I didn't take the test to become his wife, and that I had different goals in my life than to be the Emperor's wife..."

Yuri sighed as she tugged Shuurei over to the bed. She sat down facing her little sister in all but blood. "You know, I think you are making this too complicated." At Shuurei's look of confusion, Yuri elaborated. "It all boils down to one question... do you love Ryuuki?"

Shuurei blushed with a look of deep contemplation. After a moment she nodded her head yes.

"Then there you go... why was this a problem again?"

Shuurei stood up and began to pace with an agitated air. "How can it be that simple?! I became an Official to help make this country a better place! If I am just sitting in some Harem, what good does that do anyone?"

Yuri sighed once more, "Who said that that is all you would be able to do?"

Shuurei stopped pacing to look at Yuri with a confused expression, "What else could I do?"

"Just because that is what all of the previous Consorts or Wives, which ever you prefer, of the previous Emperors did, does not mean that is what you have to do! I understand it would be tough trying to change everyone's views on what a proper consort would do, but you have already changed so many minds about females in general, why not this too? Why should you sacrifice your happiness for either the country or Ryuuki, when you could commit to helping both! Granted, you would not be able to do as much outside of the Palace, but there are many things in the Palace that needs help. A woman in a position of power that actually cares would do wonders for how the government is run, which is a very good start in my opinion!"

Shuurei sat back down and contemplated the situation for a few moments. Yuri let her be until it was getting close to the time that they needed to be sent off by Ryuuki and the other Court Officials.

"Just promise me you will think about it, and stop letting other people's perceptions stop you from achieving happiness."

Shuurei sighed but got up to finish getting ready.

______________________________________________________________________________

They two women met up with Ensei, Eigetsu, and Seiran outside of the same chamber that they were assigned their tasks just the day before.

Yuri walked up the steps to the large doors and then stopped. She turned around to observe the four behind her. "Are we all ready?"

At their nods she knocked on the doors which were then opened for them. They walked in, shoulder-to-shoulder, all the way up to where Ryuuki was waiting for them.

Ryuuki looked all of them over before his gaze was inevitably drawn back to Shuurei's. He spread his arms out towards the small group. "You have my most sincere blessings." He put his arms back down and looked to Ensei, "Ro Ensei, along with Tei Yuushun, please guide them well."

Ensei bowed his head, "I will."

Ryuuki then turned his gaze to Seiran and Yuri, "Shi Seiran, Kazeno Shirayuri, do not allow even the slightest of injuries come to them."

They bowed their heads, "We swear by these swords you have given us!"

Ryuuki looked to Eigetsu, "To Eigetsu, as one with nothing to hold him back, I am expecting great things from you."

"I will do everything that I can."

Ryuuki once again turned his gaze to Shuurei. He just stared at her for a moment, as if to ingrain this moment into his memory, "Kou Shuurei. As a woman, live your life to the fullest and achieve all that you aspire to achieve."

Shuurei bowed her head, "I will do all that I am able to do."

Ryuuki looked between the two Governors, "I look forward to the day that I will see the buds I have given you bloom... From today, you are pillars of this nation!"

The five of them bowed at the waist before being dismissed. As they walked back to the door, Shuurei took one last opportunity to look back at Ryuuki. The door closed behind them, cutting off her view of him.

______________________________________________________________________________

The group made their way back to the Kou Residence to eat with Shouka. They had decided to have one last meal with him before leaving for Sa. Ensei went to go check on the carriage they would be taking while Eigetsu went to go send a letter to his village. Shuurei and Seiran went inside, intent on their own activities, while Yuri decided to just enjoy the nice weather by laying out in the grass.

Yuri was close to falling asleep when she heard the house door slide open. She groggily sat up and saw Seiran come out carrying a small bouquet of flowers and what looked like a sword wrapped in cloth. She got up and yawned while making her way towards him.

As she got closer, she realized that he had an abnormally somber expression on his face. Seiran didn't seem to notice her until she called his name.

He looked up and plastered a fake smile on his face, "Hello, Shirayuri. Did you need something?"

Yuri stopped walking towards him, a flash of hurt bursting through her. "Yes, I need you to not act like this around me. I thought that we were close enough to get past all of the formality and falseness, but maybe I was wrong."

She turned around to walk away, but stopped when she felt Seiran grab her hand. "Wait, Yuri. I apologize... It's what I am used to doing, and I am not used to someone being able to see through my actions so easily... please don't leave."

Yuri took a deep breath, to calm herself and banish the previous hurt, and then turned around. The look on his face was raw, full of past pains and memories.

She gasped and put her free hand on his face, "My God, Seiran... what happened to you?"

Seiran closed his eyes and partially leaned into her hand. After a moment, his eyes opened and locked onto hers, "Would you like to come with me?"

Yuri didn't even bother to ask where they were going, she just nodded her head and let the hand on his face drop. Seiran lightly pulled on their still clasped hands, and off they went.

______________________________________________________________________________

They walked in silence for a while, still grasping each other's hand. Eventually, Seiran broke the tense atmosphere.

"What do you know about Prince Seien?"

Yuri was confused about where the conversation was going, but answered anyways. "I only know what Shuurei told me in our lessons... If I am remembering correctly, he was the second prince and was skilled in his education as well as sword fighting. His mother and grandfather were plotting against the previous emperor when all three of them were arrested. His grandfather was executed immediately, but Seien and his mother were only banished to a remote village. That is the last anyone heard from them... why?"

Seiran seemed to hesitate for a moment before he began to speak. "That is all correct. A little dry and clinical, but true." He paused with a sigh. "My story is quite long, but will you listen to it?"

Yuri answered as she turned her head to look him in the eyes, "Of course."

Seiran squeezed her hand lightly as he began speaking, "Seien was indeed banished with his mother, even though he had no knowledge of his family's plans. He had only been concerned with his youngest half-brother, Ryuuki. The other ladies in the Harem and their sons despised both Seien and Ryuuki, although for different reasons. They despised Ryuuki because he was doted on by the Emperor; they despised Seien because he outshone the other princes in everything, studies, fighting, etiquette... it made them jealous as well as wary about their positions in the Emperor's life. This meant that when Seien was banished, the jealousy of the others caused them to send Assassins after Seien and his mother."

Yuri was entranced by the story, but something seemed off... after all, how could Seiran know so much about a banished prince?

"The assassins eventually caught up to their carriage and mercilessly attacked. Seien fought them off as best as he could, but on of the assassins captured his mother and killed her in front of his eyes... After that, something inside of him snapped. He killed every last assassin before passing out on the snow covered ground. He had ended up in Sa Province, so when he woke up, he was alone with no idea as to what to do... He ended up joining a group called Satsujinzoku. The Satsujinzoku were a murderous band of thieves. Seien, along with another boy who had joined soon after him, completely destroyed the group from the inside."

Seiran pulled Yuri to a stop in front of a tombstone, which he placed the flowers on, and was quite for a moment. Yuri, sensing that he was getting lost in his thoughts, decided to see if her suspicions were right. "Why did you join the Satsujinzoku in the first place?"

Seiran froze for a split second before looking at her with a face devoid of all emotions. He searched her eyes for something, and then he sent her a gentle smile. "I knew you would figure it out once I started talking..."

"Well, considering the last anyone supposedly heard of Seien was right before his banishment, it wasn't that hard to figure out." She tried to tease him, but with the atmosphere, it fell flat. "So why did you join?"

Seiran tried to release her hand, thinking that she would be disgusted with him, but she only tightened her grip. "When Seien... When I woke up in Sa Province, I had no idea what I was going to do. I wandered around for a little while trying to just stay alive, when I heard talk of this horrible group that was terrorizing travelers and innocents. I joined with the intent to eventually take them down, but I don't know if I decided to do this because it was for the good of the nation, or if it was some sort of revenge for others like my mother that had fallen prey to people like those assassins..." He was silent for a moment before speaking again, "It took about a year, but we were able to successfully take the Satsujinzoku down. Isn't that right... Ensei."

Yuri swung around to look at where Seiran was looking, and sure enough, Ensei was standing there with an unapologetic look on his face. "Yeah. That sounds about right... So you decided to tell my little Yuri-chan the truth of who you are?"

"Yes."

"Good."

Yuri looked between the two of them, "So Seiran joined for one of those two reasons, or maybe both. Why did you join Ensei?"

Ensei looked conflicted for a moment, but eventually answered, "I also joined with the intent to take them down. They killed my entire clan except for me, so I joined to take revenge."

Yuri hummed in thought and receded into her own thoughts. When she resurfaced, she noticed both of the men looking at her with varying degrees of nervousness.

Yuri blinked at them, "What?"

Ensei looked at Seiran who shuffled his feet, uncharacteristically nervous. "We just don't want you to be disgusted with us for our past."

Yuri snorted and looked at the incredulously, "Are you serious?! Do you not remember my story that I told the all of you? Granted I left out some of the more personal things, but don't for a second believe that of all of the enemies I killed, none of them were targeted for revenge. I know the kind of rage that can envelope your entire thinking process... If I were to disparage the two of you for your past, it would be extremely hypocritical of me!" She gave them a moment to let that sink in before moving on to her next question, "What did the two of you do after that?"

They looked at each other before silently agreeing on who would speak first. Ensei. "Well, I wandered for a couple of years before hearing the announcement for applying as the next governor of Sa Province."

"What sort of announcement?"

"That whoever could defend themselves against the assassins being sent after candidates, would become the next governor."

"Oh..."

Ensei grinned, "Yep! And since I was able to take out every assassin that came after me, I became the Governor! Of course, you know everything since I came here, so that's about it."

Yuri nodded and looked at Seiran, "What about you?"

Seiran looked at the grave as he spoke, "I wandered for a few months, not really caring about what happened to me at that point... I eventually passed out from a mixture of hunger, exhaustion, and dehydration. When I came to, Shouka-sama, Shoukun-sama, and Ojou-sama were all standing above me. It was Shoukun-Sama that gave me the name 'Seiran'. From then on, I decided that I would stay with them and help however I could, until they no longer need me, or I die."

Yuri gave both of them a hug, though if any of them noticed that her hug to Seiran noticed, they didn't say anything.

"Honestly, I am proud of the two of you for being as strong as you were. I don't just mean physically, but mentally as well... I know full grown men that would have broken under those same conditions, and yet you two would have only been teenagers at the time."

The three of them silently payed their respects to Shoukun's grave before they began the long trek back to the Kou Residence.

After a bit, Ensei brought up a question that he had forgotten about since the last time he had been here. "I forgot to ask you why you thought 'Shi' was an appropriate name..."

Yuri stumbled before catching herself and glanced at him, "That was kind of random and unexpected!"

Ensei shrugged, unapologetic, "I guess. So why?"  
Yuri absentmindedly rubbed her wrist, having not thought of the Hallows for quite some time. Being in this dimension, she hadn't found many opportunities to use her magic without being suspicious to others. She still practiced using it every night in her training, but it wasn't the same somehow.

"Do you remember the markings you saw on my wrist that one time?" Ensei nodded his head while Seiran's eyes lit up in recognition. Yuri pulled up the sleeve on her right arm, showing her bare skin. Before the men could question where the markings had gone, they slowly reappeared on her wrist. 死の女王.

Seiran read, "'Mistress of Death'? Why would you get that put onto your skin?"

Yuri laughed humorlessly, "I didn't. Do you remember how I told you the story of the 'Deathly Hallows'?" They nodded their heads, "Well, it wasn't just a story. I ended up with all three of the hallows, and this is what I got from it. My original wand and the 'Wand of Destiny' both ended up merging with my body. When I do my magic without a wand, It comes to me easily, but in reality, wandless magic is normally extremely difficult, to say the least. Most witches and wizards are incapable of doing any spells wandlessly."

Ensei hummed, "What happened to the other two 'Hallows' then?"

"I still have them." Yuri pulled out her pouch that she had brought with her from her original dimension and pulled the two items out. She held out the Invisibility cloak first, "How do you think I was always able to sneak into the Palace? I don't like using magic on innocent people, you know. So I used this to sneak by the guards." She let the two men look at the Cloak for a moment before hesitantly handing over the Resurrection Stone. "I have only ever used this stone once... I don't want to keep bringing the dead from the afterlife, they no longer belong in the land of the living... Although..." Yuri closed her eyes in though before shaking her head, "Never mind, I'll think on that another time." She took the Stone back after a moment and put both items away again.

Seiran looked at her curiously, "What does being the 'Mistress of Death' entail?"

Yuri shrugged, "As far as I can tell, all it means is that the three objects are mine and that I can't get rid of them. I've tried to get rid of the Stone, but It just kept coming back to me. I assume that I will be the last 'Master' of the Hallows. But I'm not immortal or anything, as we have seen, I can still be injured, and die from infections or illnesses."

The three continued on in silence, absorbing the overload of information they had just discovered about each other. Eventually, Ensei went on ahead of them, mumbling something about being a third wheel. Yuri and Seiran strode on in a comfortable silence.

Some time later, Yuri came to a startling realization, "Seiran, you will be going back to a place that was so painful for you... will you be okay?"

Seiran got a fierce look on his face, "I will protect Shuurei-Ojou-sama! I have to go! Regardless of what it will bring back, or what we will be facing, I have to go!"

Yuri smiled softly at him, "I get that, and I agree completely, but I wasn't asking if you were willing to go, I asked if you would be okay going."

Seiran's face smoothed out and his eyes became gentle as he looked at her. "Even if I say it will be alright, I don't know for sure how it will be..."

Yuri stopped him and gave him a hug, "I'm here for you now, and I will be there for you later! Anytime you need to vent, or need a spar to get rid of bad thoughts, no matter what you need, I'm here for you!"

Seiran wrapped his arms around her, holding her closely for a few moments. When they went to separate, Seiran kept her from completely pulling out of his embrace.

"Seiran?"

Seiran's eyes held hers with a serious gaze and he began to lean towards her. "Yuri, I-"

"Seiran!! Yuri-Nee-chan!!"

Their heads snapped up to see Shouka, Shuurei, and Eigetsu waving at them as they approached the pair. They also spotted Ensei following along with a sheepish expression on his face.

"Seiran, if you were going to go visit Mother's grave, you should have said something! We all would have come with you!"

Seiran and Yuri stepped apart, Yuri going to walk with Shuurei and Eigetsu while Seiran stalked towards Ensei.

Ensei held his hands up with a nervous expression on his face, "I didn't know they were coming, I swear!"

Seiran smiled at him with a malicious glint in his eyes, "Of course you didn't. why don't we have a... 'friendly' spar later? Hm?"

Ensei felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up and sweat bead on his forehead, knowing that he was in for a pain-filled night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right around 7300 words... (without ANs)
> 
> Okay, so (once again) nothing majorly exciting happened this chapter, a little teasing moment between Yuri and Seiran towards the end (I felt kind of bad doing that.. I had gotten my own hopes up with an almost-kiss!)!! This was mainly a chapter filled with bonding and clearing of some past questions!
> 
> As is obvious with the conversation between Yuri and Shuurei, I fully intend on making Shuurei/Ryuuki happen! I love those two together!!
> 
> I am... conflicted with this chapter... It feels off to me, but that could just be my imagination! Let me know what you think!
> 
> Review, Bookmark, and Subscribe!!!
> 
> ~GG


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Hello?" *no response*  
> "Hello?!" *Still no response*  
> "HELLO!!" *Echo: HELLO!!*  
> Erm. Well. Yeah. Hi, it's me; I'm still alive (albeit barely with me hacking my lungs out every few minutes). Bet you thought I gave up, didn'cha? NEVER!! MUAHAHAHA! I sincerely apologize for my lack of an update for-*Looks at calendar and gulps before wincing* - almost eleven months. I am sooo sorry! Life, however much I detest it sometimes, must go on and take precedence. Although, believe me, if I could, I would never work, pay bills, etc. However, not paying bills would land me in a heap of trouble, so I guess I can't just ignore them. *Nervously eyes pile of said bills sitting on desk.* Ehehehe...  
> Silliness aside, I truly am sorry for taking so long to update, life happened, story ideas happened, no seriously, I have 5 stories that I have written at least 3 chapters on, and another one that only has the barest of work done on it. As I have stated before, I will finish this story before I even think about uploading another one. Once I finish this story, I will do a brief author's note at the bottom of the last chapter to let everyone know what story I decided to do next. Not that anyone cares about that right now, y'all just want to get to the chapter, am I right? Of course I am, cause that's what I would want too!  
> Enjoy the chapter!  
> **Disclaimer** I own nothing except my laptop. I don't even own a car anymore, as I had to get a new one and need to pay it off before I can truly call it mine. My own... My preciousss.

It was early summer, and two days before their group was going to leave for Sa Province. Yuri was walking around the Kou Residence when she smelled Shuurei making some of her homemade meat buns. She walked into the kitchen with a smile on her face.  
"Smells delicious, as always, Shuurei-chan!"  
Shuurei jumped, not having heard Yuri enter. She turned around with a hand on her chest. "Yuri-nee-chan! You scared me!" It was silent for a moment before they both began to laugh.  
Yuri took a seat at the small table and lazily put her head in her hands. "So, what are you making meat buns for, Shuurei? We had lunch not too long ago."  
Shuurei spoke as she finished cooking the buns, "Well, Kouyuu-dono is here and he said that he would like to talk to me. It seemed as though the conversation might take a while so I told him I would be making some meat buns for us to eat if we get hungry."  
Yuri nodded. "Makes sense. Although I wonder what he wants to talk about?"  
Shuurei shrugged, "I have no idea. It seems rather serious though..." She packaged up the food and drinks she had made before looking at Yuri. "I guess I had better go find out! I will see you later Yuri-nee-chan!"  
Yuri waved to Shuurei absentmindedly, wondering what could be so important and whether or not it had to do with Eigetsu and Shuurei becoming the Co-Governors of Sa Province. After a few minutes of uselessly wondering, Yuri decided to resume her walk around the residence, one of the only things relieving her boredom in the final days before their departure.  
She had packed everything that she might need, and more, sure that she was prepared for any mishap that might occur in their journey.  
When she reached the front gates of the residence, she decided to take a walk to the market, and hopefully she would find something to do.  
She had been walking for about five minutes she saw familiar silver hair. Her heart sped up considerably, as did her pace. "Seiran!"  
Seiran turned immediately, hearing her call. His face immediately carried a smile when he caught sight of her. "Yuri!" He walked towards her, meeting her halfway. "Did you need something at the market?" They resumed walking as they talked.  
"Hmm, no, I just needed something to do, and I decided to walk around. What about you?"  
Seiran nodded to the list he held in his hand. "There are some things Ojou-san wanted me to pick up." He glanced at her, "Would you like to join me?"  
Yuri's smile became even brighter, if that were possible. "Of course! I'd like nothing better!" Realizing what she had said, she blushed and sped up a little. "W-well, we had better hurry up! We wouldn't the market to close before we get there!"  
Seiran chuckled lowly before matching paces with her. He wouldn't mention that it was still early morning and nowhere near the time the stalls would close.  
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Soon enough, they were walking back home, arms loaded with groceries. Both of them were walking in silence, consumed by their thoughts. After a while Yuri spoke.  
"Do you know what Kouyuu wanted to talk to Shuurei-chan about?"  
Seiran hesitated for only a moment before answering her. "He most likely wants to talk to her about Kourin."  
Yuri felt that the name was familiar. Thinking back, she realized where she had heard it before. "Kourin is the person that Ensei is going to bring to visit with Shuurei, right?" At his nod, she continued. "Who is she?"  
Seiran took a deep breath. "Kourin was a maid to Ojou-san when she was acting as the emperor's consort." He paused. Yuri nodded thoughtfully, remembering when Shuurei had finally told her about that misadventure and the consequential kidnapping that led Ryuuki to actually acting like an emperor instead of a spoiled child.  
"Judging by both your and Ensei's reaction to the name, there is more to it than that." Seiran nodded slightly.  
"She told you about being poisoned and kidnapped, due to the scheming of Sa Enjun, but what she doesn't, or rather, didn't know, was that the one who poisoned her was Kourin."  
Yuri gasped. She could easily recall the fondness in Shuurei's voice when she spoke of the young maid, whose name she hadn't recalled until Seiran made the connection for her. She could only say one thing. "Why?"  
Seiran sighed sadly. "Unfortunately, Kourin was so devoted to Sa Enjun, that, without orders, she tried to do what she thought Sa Enjun would want. She was so emotionally torn, that after the incident was resolved, she decided to go to Sa Province, back to where she was raised by Sa Enjun and his wife. I believe that she has come to beg forgiveness from Ojou-san, and ready to take whatever punishment will be given to her."  
Yuri was quiet for a moment, trying to put herself in the young girl's place. If Dumbledore had been that kind of man, if he had made a plan to destroy someone like Sa Enjun had planned, would she have done differently? Yuri could easily admit to herself that although she would hope she wouldn't have, she just didn't know. Dumbledore had become something of a grandfather to her; she likely would have done most anything for him. Unfortunately, blindly following someone could lead to such destructive behavior.  
Yuri stopped and turned to Seiran when he stopped as well. "You know that Shuurei will most likely forgive her, right?" Seiran's gaze was hard, but resigned.  
"I know. Although I don't necessarily agree."  
Yuri sighed sadly and put her hand on his arm. "You say that as someone who would do anything to protect Shuurei. I honestly would forgive her as well."  
Seiran was shocked. "Why?!"  
Smiling sadly, she continued in a quiet voice. "Because I had someone that I would have done the same thing for, had we been in a similar situation." Seiran angrily shook her hand off. Yuri buried her hurt deep inside, understanding Seiran's reaction. Understanding it didn't make it hurt any less though.  
"How could you even say something like that?! You would have hurt someone-!" Seiran shook his head, frustrated. "I would have thought you would understand my anger."  
Yuri gripped her hands tightly together around the groceries she was carrying. "I do understand. I don't think that you understand her, or my, thinking on the matter." She closed her eyes, forcing the tears back. "Seiran, you must understand, for someone like Kourin or I, we were saved by someone; saved from our past, our pain. Although I do not approve of her actions, how could I when I love Shuurei so much, I understand why she did it." She took a fortifying breath. "Do you remember when I told you about my headmaster, Dumbledore?" Seiran nodded, apparently to angry to speak to her. "I saw him as my savior from the D... from the Dursleys." Seiran tensed at the name, easily remembering the one conversation they had had about the monstrous relatives Yuri had lived with. "He gave me a home when I was accepted to my school. He became a trusted person and a grandfather figure to me." She smiled ruefully, "After his death, many things became clear that had been clouded by my hero-worship of him." At Seiran's confused gaze, she continued. "Although I had known it before, it had finally hit home that he had been the one to leave me with the Dursleys. He made me go back every year, though he did think I was safer there."  
Seiran bristled with anger. How could she still speak so fondly of the one that had given her to her abusers?! He was the cause of her painful childhood, if it could even be called a childhood.  
Yuri raised a hand, sensing the impending outburst. "He was a man. He was human. We all make mistakes, some greater than others. None of us are infallible, if we were, we wouldn't be human. Regardless of this fact, I still loved him. He was someone I could go to if I needed to. We had our disagreements, and our outright fights. We had our secrets that we kept from one another. But regardless, we were family. I had utmost trust and belief in him. If he had asked it of me, I might have killed for him. I like to think that I wouldn't, but if I thought that me killing someone would save his life, I would have done it. I just happened to be lucky in that he never wanted such things. All he wanted, all any of us wanted, was peace." Yuri paused, letting it all sink in. "Can you honestly say that if Shuurei or Shouka were the type of people that Sa Enjun was, you wouldn't have done what Kourin did?" Seeing that he was lost in thought, Yuri smiled through her tears. "I am going to head back first."  
Seiran looked up after a moment to see her shaking shoulders walking away from him. He cursed himself in his head. He had messed up. He could admit that if Shouka or Shuurei were to ask it of him, he would kill anyone. As he gazed after Yuri, he amended that thought. Almost anyone.  
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Shuurei was walking with Eigetsu, whom she had found soon after her talk with Kouyuu, and Ryuuren, whom they had run into on their way home. Their arms were full of the groceries that Shuurei had to buy since Ryuuren, and subsequently Eigetsu, decided that they wanted sweet and sour pork for dinner. When they were about five minutes from the residence, they ran into a worrying sight. Seiran was standing in the middle of the street, absently staring straight ahead. One arm was full of groceries while the other was at his side with his fist clenched tight.  
Shuurei recognized the stance. Seiran was aggravated and upset, but why?  
They trio stopped walking once they reached the silently staring man. Shuurei was the only one willing to break his silence.  
"Seiran?"  
Seiran's head whipped around to face Shuurei, and he immediately put on a fake smile. "Ojou-san!"  
"Seiran, what's wrong?"  
The bland smile didn't waver, "Nothing, Ojou-san! Are you ready to head home now?"  
Shuurei told the other two to go before them as she grabbed Seiran's arm to keep him there. Once they were alone, she released him. "Seiran?" He was no longer smiling, but he also refused to look at her. "What happened, Seiran?"  
Seiran's fist tightened even more.  
Shuurei took a stab in the dark, as Yuri-nee-chan liked to say. "Is it about Yuri-nee?"  
Seiran stiffened almost imperceptibly. Almost.  
"What happened between you two?"  
Seiran mumbled something that Shuurei couldn't hear.  
"What was that?"  
"She said that she understood Kourin's actions, but didn't approve of them. I became frustrated and angry and let it out on her."  
Shuurei had to listen closely as he was speaking almost too quickly. Once she deciphered what had been said, Shuurei sighed. "What made you angry?"  
If it was possible, Seiran stiffened even further. "That she understood why Kourin did what she did. That she said she might have done the same in her position!"  
Shuurei finally understood. "Seiran... I agree with Yuri-nee." Seiran's shocked gaze met her calm one. "If Tou-sama was trying to do something like that, I would want to help him. I wouldn't look at it as who I might hurt; I would look at it as how much it would help Tou-sama. That's just how much I love him. Kourin unfortunately loved someone like Sa Enjun instead of someone like Tou-sama, so she felt pressured to do something no girl her age should have to even know about. Yuri-nee just happened to be lucky enough to love someone that didn't do such things."  
Seiran turned his face away, ashamed at how he had treated Yuri. Shuurei once more grabbed his arm, in support this time. "She'll forgive you, Seiran."  
Seiran still refused to look at Shuurei. "Why should she?"  
Shuurei tightened her grip, "She won't forgive you because it's what she should do, she'll forgive because she wants to and because she understands that things said in anger often lead to immediate regret... She won't hold one little outburst against you."  
Seiran felt all of the worry and tension leave his body, knowing that Shuurei was right. He looked at her before they began to walk. "When did you become so wise, Ojou-san?"  
Shuurei immediately rose to the bait, "I've always been this wise, Seiran! You and Tou-sama just never noticed!"  
They laughed as they walked back to the residence, although a small part of Seiran still worried about how he would apologize to Yuri, and what her reaction would be.  
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When they got back, Seiran immediately asked if anyone knew where Yuri was. No one had any clue, other than she said she was going to go out for a short while before coming back for dinner.  
Seiran was going to go looking for her, but then he noticed Ensei was there, which meant Kourin would be there as well.  
He looked towards Shuurei to see if she wanted him to stay there. She subtly shook her head and smiled at him, encouraging him to go look for Yuri. Seiran shot a threatening glance at Ensei, wordlessly telling him that he was in charge of protecting Shuurei in his absence. Ensei, understanding the message, gave a small nod.  
Seiran walked until he reached the front gates. The he broke into a run, determined to find Yuri as quickly as possible.  
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He couldn't find her. He went back to the market, the school house, he even went to the Uuringun headquarters, and she was nowhere to be found!  
Seiran stopped running for a moment to clear his head. Then it struck him. There was one place he had yet to look.  
Seiran turned around and began running to his- no their cave. It was the only other place he could think of that Yuri would be.  
When he got there, he was disheartened to not see a fire going, seeing as it was nighttime, that would be the only light source. He was about to turn around and start his search all over again when he heard a snuffling sound from inside the cave. He grabbed a lantern from the pile of items he had set at the entrance of the cave, and lit it. He immediately discovered the source of the sound.  
It was Yuri.  
She was leaning against the cave wall with her head tilted to the side, sound asleep. Although he saw no tears now, he could see the paths they had left on her cheeks. He became angry with himself once more. He did that, he caused her to cry. Even after he had sworn to himself that he would do anything in his power to make sure she stayed happy, he is the one to cause her tears. He punched the wall in a moment of self-loathing.  
Yuri stirred at the sound and her eyes slowly opened, immediately focusing upon him. He felt lower than dirt when he saw how red her eyes were, most likely from crying a good while. He felt even worse when she sent him a genuine smile, no bitterness or anger within its depths.  
Yuri sat up stiffly, sore from sleeping in the cave. "Seiran?" She stretched with a yawn. "What are you doing here?"  
Seiran couldn't look her in the eyes, so great was his shame. He spoke with a gentle tone, trying to show her that any anger from earlier was completely gone. "I was looking for you to bring you home."  
Yuri would have had to have been blind to not notice that he was avoiding looking at her. "Well, there was no need; I would have come back when I woke up." When he still said nothing and kept his gaze averted, she gave him a sad smile. Not that he saw it. "You can leave me here; I know that you must not want to be around me now." Seiran tensed. "It's okay, honestly. I... I don't like myself sometimes, so you don't have to pretend that you're okay with me being around. I can just stay the night here, that wa-"  
"Why?!" Seiran couldn't stand to hear her talk about herself like that anymore. "Why do you act as if this is your fault, that you are the one to blame? You act as though being hated is to be expected, it's as if you think I would just turn my back on you for having your own opinion!" He stomped towards her, filled with frustration. He became more so when it was now her refusing to look at him. "You talk as though you can't understand why anyone would want to be around you!" All of his frustrated anger left him when he saw a tear drip off of her chin. "Yuri, look at me."  
She shook her head silently. Seiran took the last few steps needed in order to be within arm's length of her. "Yuri. Look at me." When she once more stayed silent, Seiran reached towards her face, intent on tilting it so he could see it.  
Yuri gasped, snatching his hand before it could complete its journey. "Seiran, your hand! What happened?"  
He looked down, confused as to what she was talking about. Then he saw the blood on his knuckles, immediately realizing that they hurt. It must have been when he punched the cave wall.  
He gently extracted it from Yuri's own hand, "It's fine, nothing to worry about. Please, look at me."  
She did look at him. Well, glared would be the more accurate description. "That is not nothing! Seiran, give me your hand so I can heal it!" She reached for it, becoming frustrated when he refused. "Why won't you let me heal it?!" She finally demanded after he continued to dodge her attempts.  
His next words stopped her cold. "Because I deserve this for the pain I inflicted upon you."  
Yuri looked into his eyes then, shocked. She did not like what she saw. The pure self-loathing that was in Seiran's eyes bothered her. She became angry. "So you decide to hurt yourself because of some imagined pain I am in?! Are you an idiot?" She would have continued had Seiran's hand not covered her mouth.  
"Don't." Yuri stopped trying to remove said hand. "Don't act like I did nothing. Don't act like it was okay for me to take my frustrations out on you!" Noticing that she was still, he moved his hand from her mouth to her fresh tear trails that had not had a chance to dry yet. "Don't act like it's okay that I made you cry." He wiped her cheeks, trying to get rid of the tears that should never have fallen in the first place. "I'm sorry."  
Yuri's eyes widened. "What?"  
Seiran's hand stilled as his gaze met hers directly. "I'm sorry that I treated you like that. That I rejected your understanding and your explanations because I couldn't admit such things to myself. I am sorry that I almost ruined our friendship for something so petty."  
Yuri grabbed his hand, healing it as she spoke. "You still would have been my friend Seiran, a small fight like that wouldn't have stopped it. Yes, it hurt, and yes I expected you to not want to be my friend anymore, but I wouldn't have blamed you. I had after all defended someone who had tried to kill Shuurei, why wouldn't you be angry?"  
Seiran tried to pull his hand away, but Yuri held on tightly. "That doesn't make it okay. If anything, that makes what I did worse! Could you ever forgive me for my actions?"  
Yuri smiled as she released his healed hand. "There was never anything to forgive. But if you insist, you were forgiven as soon as it happened."  
Seiran couldn't help it. He grabbed her into a fierce hug. "How can you be so kind? You and Shuurei are the only ones I have ever seen forgive so easily. How am I lucky enough to have both of you in my life?"  
Yuri hugged back just a fiercely. "We are the lucky ones to have someone so loyal in our lives. Don't sell yourself short Seiran. You are worth more to us than you know."  
They stood there in silence for several minutes before Yuri sneezed. Seiran released her from the hug, only to start pulling her towards home. "You need to get into a warm bed; you have been out here for hours. Although it's summer, that doesn't mean the nights can't get a little cool."  
Yuri laughed as they walked, "Don't be a mother hen, Seiran. I'll be fine!"  
They shared a laugh as they walked back, happy that their 'fight' didn't ruin anything. If anything, it brought them a little closer together.  
Once they arrived at the residence, they said goodnight and went their separate ways. Yuri headed to bed while Seiran went to find out where Ryuuren, Eigetsu, and Shuurei had gone as the only other one at the residence was Shouka.  
As it so happened, the trio had gone to the palace to look for a ghost. Nothing came of the night, but Seiran followed them as protection anyways.  
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The following day was filled with last minute preparations and saying goodbye, unofficially, to their friends. Ryuuki made a fool of himself in front of Shuurei, per usual. Ensei later went to a meeting with Ryuuki and some others to clarify how dangerous the trek would be, not that it wasn't common knowledge already.  
When the group retired that night, they were all filled with anticipation as well as anxiety. After all, if this were an easy thing to do, there would be no problem in the first place.  
Sa Province was politically, and almost economically, unbalanced. It would take careful planning and quick actions to keep the Province from erupting into a potential war zone.  
They would overcome their obstacles or die trying.  
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The group of six- Ensei, Seiran, Yuri, Shuurei, Eigetsu, and Kourin, who had gained permission from Shuurei to join them, left early the next morning. Kourin seemed to only be comfortable around Ensei and Shuurei, although she was quickly warming up to Yuri, due to the fact that Shuurei viewed her as an older sister.  
They were riding in a carriage with Ensei and Seiran sitting on the driver's bench while the other four rode in the actual carriage. They all noticed Shuurei's silence and the longing gaze she directed back towards Kiyou.  
Eigetsu decided to try and cheer her up. "This is your first time leaving Kiyou, right Shuurei-san?"  
Shuurei turned her gaze to Eigetsu instead of staring at the home they were leaving behind. "Yes, and although I wish we could travel at a more leisurely pace, we need to reach the capital of Sa Province within three months."  
Yuri, who was still carefully observing the swiftly passing scenery, piped up. "The capital is Koren, right?"  
Shuurei nodded, "Yes." She took a deep breath before sharing a look with Eigetsu. "Now that we have left Kiyou, we have to think that our work has already begun."  
Ensei spoke up from the front. "That's right! After all, safely claiming office is also one of your responsibilities as governors."  
Kourin looked at them all with worry in her eyes. "But it normally only takes a month and a half to get to Koren..."  
Yuri, who was sitting beside the young girl pat her head gently. "It would be nice if we could guarantee that would be how long it would take. However, we all know that it is only a matter of time before the pursuers the Sa Clan is sure to have sent catch up."  
Kourin nodded thoughtfully before directing speaking to Ensei, "What will happen if they don't reach their post within three months?"  
"They will be regarded as having abandoned their post and will be ripped of their rank as governor."  
"But..."  
Shuurei sent the girl a reassuring look, "All that means is that we will have to reach the capital as soon as possible!"  
Ensei sped the carriage up as the spoke, "All right! That's the spirit, Hime-san!"  
Yuri leaned back, noting that they already had some pursuers. "On the plus side, it's not as though you'll be imprisoned if we don't make it in time!"  
Shuurei, knowing that it was a joke meant to lighten the atmosphere pouted playfully, "That's not reassuring at all Yuri-nee!"  
They all laughed, relieved that the serious atmosphere was lifted. After all, they had three months of constant worrying ahead of them; there was no harm in a little levity.  
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When they stopped for the evening, Yuri traded looks with Seiran and Ensei, knowing that they were aware of their pursuers. After a quick, and silent, conversation, Ensei got up and told the group that he was going to try and catch something for them to eat.  
Yuri and Shuurei began to prepare some vegetables to eat while the others set about putting up camp.  
After several moments of comfortable silence, Eigetsu came to another realization. "Shuurei-san, this is your first time camping, isn't it?"  
Shuurei paused in their preparations to answer, "Yes, but considering how dangerous our road is, it can't be helped."  
Yuri nodded, "If we were to stay in a town, especially overnight, our chances of being discovered increase potentially."  
Shuurei nodded, "Plus, there is no harm in being frugal!"  
Seiran stood up and looked in their direction before speaking to Shuurei. "Ojou-san, the water is boiling now."  
"Ah, thank you Seiran!"  
Yuri picked up her bowl of vegetables when she looked over and saw Kourin take Shuurei's bowl out of her hands.  
Kourin looked at Shuurei firmly, "I will take this Shuurei-sama. You should rest some more."  
Shuurei looked at her with a bemused expression. "Uhm, thank you."  
Kourin looked down and seemed to be gathering her courage before speaking again. "Shuurei-sama... thank you very much for allowing me to accompany you." Before Shuurei could respond, she gave a quick bow and hurried to deal with the food.  
Shuurei gave Yuri a helpless look, causing her to chuckle. She sent Shuurei a shrug before going to take care of her part of the cooking as well.  
Soon after, Ensei showed up with several fish on a string. He handed them to Shuurei before joining Seiran with Yuri following close behind.  
Seiran was the first to speak, "How did it go with the pursuers?"  
Ensei shrugged, unconcerned, "I took care of them."  
Yuri hummed thoughtfully. "I think we should take turns taking care of any pursuers, that way any one of us doesn't get overly tired from doing so."  
The other two nodded, easily seeing the sense in such a plan.  
They rejoined their other group members, all of whom were none the wiser as to what was going on. The night ended peacefully, everyone having had their fill of food. The three fighters set up a watch schedule to make sure they were protected even through night, which passed just as peacefully.  
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The following weeks were a repeat of the first day. They would wake up, break camp and load up, travel through the day with occasional stops for nature, and then when the sun began to set, they would stop and make camp once more. If there were bandits, or other undesirables, following them, either Yuri, Seiran, or Ensei would go and deal with them under some pretense or another.  
Shuurei, Eigetsu, and Kourin knew nothing of any of their pursuers.  
After almost four weeks of travel, the decided to stop in the next town, which they did every so often. Of course, this time was different from the others and Ensei somehow managed to be mistaken as a kidnapper when he tried to help Eigetsu get a book off of a shelf in a bookstore.  
Yuri still laughed when she remembered how Ensei, with Eigetsu on his shoulder, ran towards them with angry men chasing behind.  
Luckily, Kourin was there and able to convince the angry mob that it was a misunderstanding and that Ensei was her father while Eigetsu was her brother.  
The look on Ensei's face when Kourin called him Tou-san was even funnier, according to Yuri.  
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They left that town soon after the incident. Of course, instead of it being left alone as a huge mistake, Yuri brought it up during the ride.  
"Well, that was fun. How are you doing up there, Kidnapper-san?"  
Ensei remained stubbornly silent, refusing to rise to the bait.  
Seiran chose then to ask the question they were all thinking. "How did you manage to get mistaken for a kidnapper, of all things?"  
Eigetsu, surprisingly, was the one to answer. "I'm sorry, it was all my fault! We had gone to a bookstore when I saw some medical texts I had never read before. I went to get them, but they were on a shelf that was out of reach."  
Ensei took over, "I saw him struggling, and figured her could use a hand. So, I picked him up. Next thing we know, there is a man shouting about a kidnapping before he and others began to chase us."  
Yuri tried in vain to hold back her laughter. "Why didn't you just grab the books, yourself?"  
Ensei shot her a look, "I didn't know which book he was reaching for!"  
Yuri lost the battle against her laughter.  
Seiran heaved an exasperate sigh. "Next time ask."  
Yuri's laugh was so contagious, soon everyone was laughing.  
Once the laughter stopped, Ensei spoke again. "It's a good thing Kourin-jou-chan is a quick-thinker! She saved us a lot of trouble!"  
Shuurei looked at said girl with a kind smile, "That's true. Thank you, Kourin... I'm glad you came with us."  
Kourin flushed slightly at the praise. "N-no, it was nothing..."  
Eigetsu looked at her admiringly, "But still, to be able to come up with such a story so quickly is amazing!"  
"It was only because the two of you were so careless!"  
Eigetsu's admiring gaze turned into a saddened and ashamed look. "I-I'm sorry."  
Yuri put a soothing hand on Kourin's arm as Shuurei spoke to her. "Well, Eigetsu apologized, so let's not be too hard on him, ok?"  
All of Kourin's bluster drained out of her quickly. "Yes, of course."  
They all thought the moment over, so they were surprised when Eigetsu asked for the carriage to be stopped. They were all even more shocked when he calmly, and surely, stated that Kourin had a fever. Shuurei immediately swooped down upon the young girl to check for herself.  
She did indeed have a fever. Eigetsu gave her a pill to help, and while the three youngest talked, Yuri joined Ensei and Seiran on the driver's bench.  
She looked at them both, "We need to stop for the night; we can't risk her fever getting worse due to a lack of care."  
Kourin, who heard the comment, protested immediately, stating that she would be fine to continue traveling.  
Ensei was the one to destroy that idea by telling her that she needs to let them know when she's not feeling well. After all, if one of them were to become ill, it could cause problems and delays that they could not afford to have.  
As Eigetsu and Shuurei comforted the distraught girl, Seiran jumped to the ground and unhitched one of the horses.  
Shuurei leaned out the window and asked him where he was going.  
"I am going to scout ahead. The town of Sakyou should be at the base of the mountain. We should get a room there for the night." After he finished talking, he rode off.  
Ensei started the carriage moving again and they listened to Kourin bickering at Eigetsu while Shuurei tried to calm the young girl down.  
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They met Seiran at the entrance of the town. The group had a short discussion before they decided it would be best if they were to split up, still desiring to keep Shuurei and Eigetsu's roles as governors unknown.  
It was quickly decided that Yuri would take Shuurei and Kourin with her while the three males would meet them at the closest lodging.  
Yuri took the other two by the arms and found the nearest available place to buy for the night and quickly got Kourin settled into the bed. She left Shuurei to take care of the youngest girl while she went to retrieve the others. She didn't have far to go, as they were waiting in the main area of the first floor.  
When they got to the room, it was to see that Shuurei had tucked Kourin in and put a damp cloth on her forehead, hopefully preventing the fever from worsening. They walked in quietly, noticing that the young girl had fallen asleep.  
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They took turns watching over Kourin and the day slowly turned to evening.  
It was Eigetsu's turn to watch over the sickly girl when Shuurei approached with a fresh bucket of water and a new cloth.  
"I will take over for a while now, Eigetsu." She continued to walk closed as she spoke, placing the bucket on a nearby table. "You should get some rest."  
Eigetsu lifted his hand, which had a small case containing more of the pills he had had Kourin take earlier. "In that case, please have Kourin-san take this when she wakes." He placed the case on the bed next to the slumbering girl.  
Shuurei smiled at him kindly, "I will."  
Eigetsu wandered into the other part of the room, which contained a couch, and lay down. He only startled slightly when a familiar hand was suddenly in front of him, holding a blanket.  
"Here, Eigetsu, cover up. I don't want you becoming ill as well."  
Eigetsu looked up to see Yuri looking at him with a stern, yet kind, expression. "Yes, of course, Yuri-san."  
Yuri rolled her eyes at the boy fondly, "Don't address me as "Yuri-san", it makes me feel awkward. For the last time, just Yuri, or even "nee-chan" would do!"  
Eigetsu gave her a mischievous smile, "I will try harder... Yuri-san."  
Yuri laughed lightly and mussed his hair. "Get some sleep you brat."  
Without waiting for a response, Yuri walked to where Shuurei was sitting by Kourin's bed. "How is her fever?"  
Shuurei lightly put her hand on the girl's head. "It has gone down a fair bit... She should be ready to travel tomorrow morning, as long as she does not do anything strenuous."  
Yuri nodded before lounging against a nearby wall. She had taken a short nap earlier, while Seiran and Ensei had still been in the room, so she should be fine without sleep for a few hours yet.  
Shuurei traded out the damp cloths and was about to sit back once more when Kourin stirred. Shuurei looked at her apologetically. "I'm sorry, did I wake you?"  
Kourin looked at her dazedly, "Shuurei-sama..." her gaze cleared suddenly and she went to sit up hurriedly.  
Shuurei caught her with her hand and made her lay back down. "No. You need to rest more."  
Kourin did not struggle, even as Shuurei replaced the cloth that had been dislodged. She spoke softly from her supine position, "I'm so sorry... Shuurei-sama."  
Shuurei turned to put the old cloth into the water to use again later. "It's not your fault, Kourin-chan." She began to rinse the cloth of the sweat that had gathered on it. "In fact, it would be my fault for having us sleep outside all of the time." She paused in her actions and turned back to Kourin with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry."  
Yuri had been about to interject, ready to correct Shuurei and tell her it wasn't, in fact, her fault, but Kourin spoke up before she could.  
"No. You're mistaken." Yuri paused and realized where the conversation was headed. She shifted to leave and give them privacy when she froze as Shuurei's eyes locked onto hers. Shuurei's eyes were begging her to stay, even as she put a calming hand on Kourin and told her to rest some more.  
Yuri reluctantly leaned back into the wall. She wasn't so sure she wanted to hear the young girl's confession of past crimes. She knew that it was going to be hard for Kourin to talk, and she probably only wanted Shuurei to know what she was going to say, even though everyone, except Eigetsu, already knew about her past actions.  
She was snapped out of her silent musings when Kourin began to talk once more. "I'm sorry." Yuri could see Kourin close her eyes, although she was unsure if it was from exhaustion or some emotion she was feeling. When Shuurei told Kourin that she hopes she got better soon, the younger girl turned onto her side, dislodging the cooling cloth once more. She lay quietly for a second before slowly sitting up, this time Shuurei did not stop her. "I am so sorry."  
Shuurei gave her a soft look, "You don't need to apologize so much."  
Kourin gripped the cooling cloth in her hand, "I-I have no right to be treated so well, especially by you!" Yuri noticed that her voice became watery by the end of her statement.  
Shuurei leaned closer, incredulous. "What are you talking about?!"  
Kourin refused to look towards Shuurei. "There is something I must apologize to you for!" Kourin paused, seemingly gathering the courage to finally look at Shuurei. "About the incident around a year ago... it was all my doing!"  
Shuurei just regarded her calmly before getting the girl to lie down once more. She sat in the chair next to the crying girl's bed until Kourin fell asleep once more.  
Shuurei looked at the once again asleep girl, not even jumping when Yuri spoke to her. "Why didn't you say anything back to her?"  
Shuurei smiled and lightly brushed Kourin's bangs out of the way. "I saw how distressed she was and did not believe it was the right time to talk to her about it. I want her to be completely lucid when we speak so that she will believe me when I tell her I don't hold any ill feeling towards her, and that I already knew."  
Yuri gave an understanding nod. They sat together in the silence, not even moving as Seiran came back to the room, although Yuri did look at him and smile.  
Seiran sent her a questioning look, but she just shrugged and shook her head at him. He sat at the table, knowing that he would find out why the atmosphere was so somber, later.  
After several more minutes of just watching Kourin sleep with a contemplative look on her face, Shuurei reached over to turn the cloth on Kourin's forehead.  
Yuri walked over and stopped her. "Why don't you go relax for a while, I will take care of Kourin for now." Shuurei hesitated only slightly before she nodded her agreement and went to sit with Seiran at the table.  
Seiran watched her, concerned with how she was feeling hearing the truth from Kourin's own mouth. He decided not to ask her about it, however. "Ojou-san. How is Kourin feeling?"  
Shuurei blinked, her contemplative look dissolving into a smile, "Well, she will be fine, although it seems the strain of this trip came out all at once." She looked around, finally noticing their missing member. "Where's Ensei?"  
Seiran glanced at Yuri, who was looking at him, waiting to hear how he would cover the truth this time, after all the two of them had left together earlier. "He decided to keep looking around town to see if anything was happening." Seiran paused as he watched Shuurei prepare three cups of familiar tea. "Perhaps he's been mistaken for a kidnapper again?"  
Seiran could hear Yuri snickering softly in the other room. Shuurei stopped in her preparation and closed her eyes in remembered exasperation. "Seiran, Yuri-nee, that's not funny... But that beard's the problem, isn't it?! That's why I keep telling him to shave!"  
Seiran just continued smiling serenely, "But I don't think we would have made it this far without anyone figuring out who we were if Ensei, as our coachman who is in plain sight, didn't look as he does." His voice turned thoughtful, "I'm afraid, regardless of how hard I try to grow a beard, I couldn't make such a suspicious and imposing character."  
Shuurei looked towards the ceiling in thought, "Seiran with a mustache or beard..." Yuri tried to contain her laughter as the young woman clearly imagined such a thing, but some of it escaped anyways when she saw Shuurei's unimpressed look. Shuurei quickly wiped the look, and most likely the thoughts, away. "But we can't always impose on Ensei like this."  
Seiran shrugged uncaringly, "He's your assistant. It's his job to be imposed upon."  
Yuri spoke up from her bedside vigil. "Besides, I doubt he even minds. Actually, I doubt he thinks of it as an imposition... he probably enjoys terrifying others with his wild appearance."  
Shuurei nodded to them both with her smile still in place. "I see."  
As Shuurei finished the tea, Seiran continued, "And of course, Yuri and I are also here for you."  
Shuurei sounded cheerful as she spoke. "It's been that way for a long time with you Seiran." She paused as they watched the flower tea bloom in the hot water. "But maybe I should say it now... that I’m sorry.” Shuurei placed the finished tea in front of Seiran and Yuri.  
Yuri, sensing that she had no place in the current conversation, kept her comments to herself. She quietly sipped at her tea as Seiran responded.  
“There is no need to apologize, Ojou-san. Even if there were, it would all be forgiven by a single cup of tea made by you.” Seiran takes a sip of his own tea before changing the subject. “Come to think of it, the tea in this area is much sweeter, isn’t it?”  
Yuri hummed in agreement. “I think it’s called Kanro tea…” She took another sip. “Definitely sweeter that most other teas!”  
Shuurei nodded, “It’s the first time I’ve ever had such sweet tea. It’s not at all heavy, plus it is really delicious!”  
Seiran gave a short huff of laughter as he shook his head in denial. “It’s not your first time.” Both Shuurei and Yuri looked at him in confusion. “We’ve had it in the past when we came by this way… and you liked it very much!”  
Shuurei put a hand on her cheek in shock. “You’re kidding!”  
“It’s true.” Seiran, seeing Shuurei’s embarrassed face, continued. “When you were two or three, you wanted it even more than food, and would insist on having some!”  
Shuurei, still with an embarrassed flush upon her face, spoke thoughtfully. “Come to think of it, we met you in Sa Province, didn’t we? Father told me so before.” Shuurei closed her eyes briefly. “Seiran. Yuri-nee-chan… I’m really happy that you both came with us.”  
Yuri restrained herself from squealing and hugging Shuurei, who looked so adorable at the moment.  
Seiran just looked at her with a gentle look in his eyes. “We are the special guards assigned to you and Eigetsu, so it’s only natural.”  
Shuurei shook her head with an exasperated huff. “True, but that’s not what I mean. Now that I’ve become an Official, I thought that I had prepared myself to be sent out to any region or post on my own. Your life is your own. In actuality, either of you could have chosen any path that you wanted… Even so, His Majesty bestowed swords unto both of you, and you both stayed with me. I’m really happy about that.”  
She paused briefly before continuing with a serious expression. “Seiran, I don’t know what happened in the past, in Sa Province, and if you don’t want to talk about it, I won’t ask.” Yuri did not miss the widening of Seiran’s eyes.  
Shuurei rose from her chair before walking to where Seiran was sitting before placing a hand on his. She looked towards Yuri, “The same goes for you and your past, Yuri-nee.” Here she looked between both of them. “Just as the two of you always take care of me, I am also watching out for the both of you. So, for starters, I don’t want either of you to hold yourselves back because of me. It’s okay to look gloomy, and show me that you’re worried about something.”  
Yuri was too shocked to move, but the same could not be said about Seiran. He gave a soft smile before speaking. “It’s not that I don’t want to go to Sa Province. After all, that’s the place where I met Shouka-sama, Shoukun-sama, and you. It’s just that I haven’t finished sorting out my feelings for this place. So, until I do, I might look a little gloomy.”  
Yuri finally overcame her shock. “Oh Shuurei, it’s not that I tried to keep you out of it, I just am not comfortable talking about a lot of what happened to me in the past. You are allowed to ask me questions, just know that I may not answer them right away…” She got up and hugged the younger girl. “I have no doubt that there will be plenty of time that I might be gloomy as well, just bear with me, okay?”  
Shuurei nodded before turning her attention to Seiran as he spoke. “At times like that, will you make some Kanro tea and have it with us?”  
Shuurei looked between the two of them. “That’s it?”  
Yuri nodded and hugged her more tightly as Seiran simply said, “Yes.”  
Shuurei gave a short laugh. “Alright. In that case I need to buy lots of Kanro tea.”  
Seiran looked at her bemusedly. “It’s expensive.”  
Yuri just smiled at their bickering. “Silly! If that’s the price of making you feel better, it’s cheap!”  
Seiran gave one last laugh before all humor left his face as he glared at the doorway. “And? How much longer do intend on standing there eavesdropping, Ensei?” Shuurei was shocked when Ensei came into the room at the same time that Eigetsu sat up from his place on the nearby couch. Yuri was amused and resigned.  
Eigetsu apologized right at Ensei stated that he was back. In the silence that followed, Ensei attempted to defend himself. “It was such a nice scene… I thought it would be rude to intrude.”  
Eigetsu, staring down at his lap, meekly spoke. “I felt the same.”  
Shuurei brushed of her shock with ease. “Welcome back, Ensei. Would either of you like some tea?”  
Both gave an affirmative response.  
Ensei turned towards Seiran and Shuurei began making more tea. “You know, you’re really very kind when it’s just you, Hime-san, and Yuri-chan… aren’t you Seiran? The only time you appear to have a good personality is with those two and Shouka-san, isn’t it?” Ensei chuckled a bit. “Oh, I’ll also make you some Kanro tea and have it with you!”  
Seiran looked at him blankly. “In your case, you’d be unwanted company, idiot.”  
Yuri began laughing uncontrollably at everyone’s expressions. Seiran’s was blank, Ensei was mock offense, Eigetsu’s was uncomfortable, and Shuurei’s was blissfully ignorant.  
“Man, that’s mean!” Ensei complained. “I just wanna support you!”  
Seiran just stared at him, “I’d rather befriend locusts than get your support.”  
They all sat up for a little while longer, bickering, chatting, and checking on Kourin, before settling down to sleep. Shuurei, Ensei, and Seiran decided to set up watch just in case.  
&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%&&%%  
Morning came with no incidents. After breakfast Ensei laid a map on the table that had their course marked. “Now that we’ve eaten, let’s get started.” He pointed to a part of their route that intersected with a gated wall. “Once we slip past the border guard at Sairi, which is just beyond Sakyo, we’ll be in Sa Province. We’re almost there.”  
“We’re going to sneak past the border guard?” Eigetsu asked with trepidation.  
Ensei looked grim. “It’s risky, and we’ll encounter criticism later for avoiding the border office, but it’s our best bet.”  
Shuurei and Eigetsu straightened from their slouched positions. Shuurei sighed. “Taking office really is quite a burden, isn’t it?”  
Ensei looked at her. “That’s because Sa Province is unique.”  
Eigetsu spoke up suddenly. “By the way, how old were you when you became governor, Ensei-san?”  
Ensei looked towards the ceiling thoughtfully. “Well, since it’s been exactly ten years, that would mean I was… Seventeen years old when I took office. The same age that Hime-san is now.”  
“Seventeen?!” Shuurei and Eigetsu exclaimed at the same time.  
Ensei scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, seventeen.”  
Yuri giggled at the incredulous expressions the teens held as Seiran rubbed his forehead, exasperated, as he spoke. “You know, you’re probably about the only one who’s been the governor of the same province for ten years.”  
Ensei gave a wry laugh. “I was simply forgotten about by the central government during the fight for the throne.”  
Seiran looked at him with a contemplative expression. “Considering the fact that Sa Province is plagued by endless problems, how did you keep things so under control that the court forgot about you?”  
Everyone looked at Ensei with probing gazes. Yuri crossed her arms expectantly. “That is a very good question, Seiran.”  
Shuurei gave her own input. “That is pretty amazing, Ensei.” Eigetsu nodded his head in agreement.  
Ensei ran his fingers through his short beard, embarrassed. “Well, back to the subject. We have to plan the rest of the journey.” He once again pointed at the map. “To put it simply, at our current pace, it will take about a month to get to Koren, the capital of Sa Province.”  
Yuri looked at the map thoughtfully. “That is if we don’t encounter any time consuming problems along the way.”  
Ensei nodded. “First, we have to deal with the border guard at Sairi, which we will be encountering soon.”  
Seiran spoke up. “What have you heard about the border?”  
Ensei looked frustrated. “At Sairi’s guard station, all young men around the ages of twelve or thirteen as well as young women around the ages sixteen or seventeen coming in from our side of the border are being temporarily confined.” Everyone looked grim at this news. “There’s no doubt it’s the actions of the idiots in the Sa Clan. Once the young men and women are confined, they are supposed to stay in the custody of the guard station until summer passes.”  
Shuurei’s eyes narrowed. “In other words, until our time frame to take office closes, right?”  
Seiran looked resigned. “Shall we split up, after all?”  
Yuri did not want to, but she knew it was their only chance.  
Ensei obviously agreed, “We have no other choice, do we? After all, I’m famous in Sa Province. If I were to continue to travel with all of you, I would be telling everyone that the two new governors were travelling with me. The risk of being discovered would be extremely high.” Ensei tried to shake off the somber air surrounding them. “And so, we’ll go over the details later… but first, we will go over the most important point. The place to aim for right now is here,” He points to the map, “just before the provincial capital. The merchant capital, Kinka.”  
He paused and looked at everyone. “You have all memorized the map, right?” At everyone’s confirmation, he looked to Shuurei and Eigetsu. “Nothing can begin until you arrive there. Whatever may happen, Hime-san, Eigetsu, it is crucial that you get there.” Ensei took on a serious look that Yuri had never seen on him before. “You have to understand, this is a must.” Yuri felt a shiver go down her back.  
Shuurei’s next words did nothing to dissipate her unease. “Ensei… I’m not getting a good vibe from those words of yours…”  
Eigetsu looked to be in almost physical pain. “I-I agree…”  
Everyone turned towards the bed when they heard a low grunt and shuffling. Kourin was sitting up in the bed, looking around the room, confused.  
Shuurei immediately walked towards her, “Kourin!”  
Kourin, still looking confused, spoke. “Shuurei-sama?” All confusion cleared from her face as she seemed to remember what had happened. “I’m so sorry! It seems I have slept an awfully long time.”  
Shuurei silenced her apologies. “Your face is still a bit flushed, you need to sleep some more!”  
“No. Thanks to you, I’m feeling much better now.” Kourin slipped out from beneath the sheets before prostrating herself before Shuurei.  
Shuurei was taken aback. “Kourin?”  
Kourin looked up at her with an apologetic expression. “I know what I’ve done is unforgivable… but even so, please let me remain by your side! Even if it means my life, I intend to protect you, Shuurei-sama.”  
Shuurei continued to look dumbfounded only briefly before a gentle smile overtook her features. She walked towards the once again prostrate girl before laying a hand on her head. “Kourin…” She spoke softly, not continuing until the younger girl looked at her once more. “Actually, I heard about everything from Kouyuu before we departed.”  
Kourin had a bewildered expression upon her face. “Then why did you permit me to accompany you?!”  
“Because I still like you, Kourin.”  
Kourin sat up, eyes brimming with tears. “Sh-Shuurei-sama!” The youngest girl of the group threw herself at Shuurei, hoping that the older women meant what she had said.  
Shuurei caught Kourin in a hug, rubbing the young girl’s back as she spoke. “Thank you for talking to me about it.” She leaned back, looking into Kourin’s eyes. “Once I’ve formally taken office as Governor, please stay by my side, okay?”  
Kourin quickly dried her tears and smiled beatifically at the soon to be Governor. “Yes! Even if it means my life, I will absolutely keep you safe!”  
Shuurei gave a short laugh. “Don’t waste your life on me.” At Kourin’s bewildered look, Shuurei continued. “After all, like they say, ‘When there is life, there is hope’, right?”  
Kourin was so overwhelmed with the idea that Shuurei cared about her life, she could only mutter her name. “Shuurei-sama.”  
The moment was disrupted when Yuri suddenly straightened and looked towards the closed window. She could hear the faint clamoring of armor. She nudged Seiran to make sure he heard it too. She had no doubt both he and Ensei did when she looked at their grim faces. The two men walked to the window while Yuri walked towards the bed where Shuurei and Kourin still were.  
Shuurei looked at her with apprehensive eyes, slowly releasing Kourin from their hug. “What is happening Yuri-nee?” Yuri just held a finger to her lips, bidding them to stay quiet. At a look from Seiran she pulled Shuurei to her feet as he wrapped Kourin in a blanket.  
Seiran looked at Eigetsu. “Stay by Kourin.”  
Eigetsu sat by the bed ridden girl. “Yes.”  
Shuurei was confused and afraid. “Wh-what is going on?”  
Ensei walked up to Yuri and Shuurei before thrusting a package into Shuurei’s arms. “Hime-san, hold this.” Once Shuurei grabbed the package, Ensei nodded to Yuri.  
Yuri quickly hid herself and Shuurei under the bed, sending a look to Shuurei that quelled any protests she might have made. Shuurei seemed to finally understand how serious of a situation they were in.  
The two hidden women watched silently as first Seiran and then Ensei’s feet passed their line of sight. Ensei paused for a moment. “Remember, Hime-san… you’re the Governor and a Lady of the direct line of the Kou Clan. Yuri-chan, no matter what happens, you and Hime-san must make it to Kinka… Understood?”  
Yuri dared not speak at a louder tone than a whisper. “I understand, Nii-san. Be safe.”  
Mere seconds after Yuri resumed her silence, she could hear the door to the room burst open and a male voice speak.  
“We are from the border office of Sairi! Don’t move!”  
Yuri felt Shuurei stiffen behind her, so she reached a hand back in offer of comfort. Shuurei grasped it immediately.  
They could do nothing but stay still and silent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let’s see… around 9,400 words? Is that enough of an apology?  
> …Again I am sooo sorry for the long awaited update, but as I have stated before, I will never abandon a story. I put Just Another Adventure on Hiatus due to this story, but I will finish this before A) going back to JAA or B) posting another story.  
> Thank you again for your patience, I hope you are still reading my story!  
> Anyways, left it on a cliffhanger, but it was the only place in this chapter I was willing to stop it at which is why it is such a long chapter!  
> This chapter mainly focused on the characters relationships between each other and some slight character development, as per canon. I am still following pretty close to the SM canon at this point, but soon, soon my lovelies, canon will be a thing of the past!! MUAHAHA. Kind of.  
> So I have not started chapter 12 yet, hopefully I will have it up within a month, but I am currently looking for a new job, my current one has finally pushed me to the point of breaking. Unfortunately that will be my main focus in life.  
> Sorry for the long AN! See you next chapter!  
> ~GG

**Author's Note:**

> So here is the first chapter of SHIRAYURI POTTER! Yuri will be paired with Seiran! (Oh and I will be going by the anime with a few of my own twists, cause I love Shuurei and Ryuuki too much to let their romance be ruined!) but I will get that figured out.
> 
> So for anyone who found this story, what do you think? Think it might be something interesting or should I forget my silly idea and drop it? (ha like im going to do that!)
> 
> See you next chapter!
> 
> ~GG


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